The Riders Of Remnant
by BlackLight181
Summary: In Remnant, myth's and legends abound. But every legend is based on some truth, something that once was. One such tale, the tale of Four Horseman, is one that few know today. But all of Remnant shall soon learn that not only did the Horsemen once roam their world but that they do so once again.
1. The Shining Beacon

_**Chapter 1 - The Shining Beacon**_

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**AN: I. LIVE! **

**Been a while, hasn't it? **

**Sorry for not posting anything at all for over on here guys. I burned myself out on RWBY fics and I only recently got my energy back to write for RWBY. I also had to get a job and I was helping take care of my Great-Grandmother for the past two years til she passed. But now I am back with a new story and with all the stuff we know now about the lore of RWBY I have a lot more to work with so this story is gonna be a lot of fun. **

**This story is based on my other story, "The Conqueror", but there shall be several major differences in this story. I won't be going into any more detail about that, obviously, so I hope you all stick around and see what this story has in store! Enough about that though so let's get to what you guys clicked on this story for. **

**Onto the story!**

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**Beta Reader: _WhiteNightBlade_**

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Fire. It burned so hotly it felt as though he was standing at its center.

Smoke. His eyes felt like they were on fire and his throat seized up, forcing him to his knees.

The chorus of agony and pain rang through the village, forcing him to cover his ears. Through his blurred vision, he watched as his home, his families home, burned to the ground.

He saw corpses littering the street as the monsters feasted upon them. He began to cry out for help, but his voice caught in his throat, letting out only a small cry in its place.

Tears began to drip from his face, mixing into the blood that drenched the ground. He looked down at his reflection, seeing only the faces of those he had lost instead of his own. The image then began to distort as the ground began to quake.

_Something was coming_

The force that shook the ground only grew louder as it grew ever closer to him. Fear consumed him as his small body began to shake uncontrollably. He wanted to run, to flee, but found his body would not respond to him. A giant clawed foot stomped down in front of him, blood flying up and masking his face as it did so. As his crying became uncontrollable, he looked up at the beast, seeing only dark red eyes stare back into his own. He tried once more to move, to run, but found once again that his legs would not budge. It was as though they were frozen.

He looked up into the soulless eyes of what would soon send him to the next world, his nightmare made flesh. Its blood red eyes stared down his azure blue as it silhouetted against the fractured moon.

Pain erupted from his chest suddenly as a claw stabbed through it, lifting him off the ground. Blood poured down the beast's claw as it brought him close, it's eyes seeming to stare directly into his soul. Air then rushed by him as the beast tossed him away, flinging him away as though he was the weight of a feather. He felt his life begin to slip away as his blood pooled out around him, soaking the ground even more and causing him to choke as he attempted to breathe.

Darkness began to overtake the light as his vision faded. His last sight was of the beast raising its foot over him before bringing it down onto him.

* * *

His eyes shot open suddenly then as he sat up-right. A moment passed before he fell back against the wall of the dust plane, releasing a heavy sigh as he did so. He had, unfortunately, grown accustomed to these constant nightmares. Near every time he closed his eyes he received one, each one reminding him of the home and the family he lost long ago. He rubbed the crust from his eyes as he began to feel his stomach churn. 'Why did I get on this damned thing?' he questioned as he held his stomach. He knew the answer. He wanted to be a Huntsmen. Since he was a boy, it was the only thing he could see himself doing in his future.

Especially after what happened to his home. That day sealed his fate, as well as the fate of his family.

And now he sat, soon to be a huntsman in training. He wondered what his mothers and sisters would think of him now. He briefly pondered on what his father would think, but that thought soon faded away as his stomach once again began to churn. He placed his left hand on his gut as he stood, the pain in his abdomen making the action somewhat difficult. Fastening it to his back Jaune slowly made his way towards a trashcan that was close by. As he did so a hologram of a woman whom he could only assume was a teacher at Beacon. "Hello, and welcome to Beacon Academy."

"Who's that?" a girl asked.

"My Name is Glynda Goodwitch."

"Oh."

As the Huntress continued her speech, Jaune made his way towards the can and upheaved what he had eaten the previous day. He wiped his mouth clean before hearing a commotion and seeing everyone race over to the windows. Jaune slowly made his way there as well and found what they were all looking at.

Beacon. The Academy looked more like a castle than a hunters academy, but the sight of was awe-inspiring regardless.

This was where he would fulfill his dream.

This was where he would achieve his goal.

This is where his journey would begin.

"Oh, Yang! Gross! You have puke on your shoes!" the younger girl said.

"Gross! Gross! Gross! Gross! Gross! Gross! Gross!" the other one said as she tried to get the puke off her shoes.

"...Goddamnit." Jaune said after releasing a heavy sigh.

It did not take much longer for the ship to dock at Beacon and for everyone to start racing into the school. After the flood of people exited the airship, Jaune made his way off and began to look around the school grounds. It was even more beautiful up close. Everything from the school itself to just the courtyard was like something out of a dream. He made his way towards the center of the courtyard and stopped as he reached the fountain. Whomever the two warriors encased in stone were, they must have been special in some way.

Or someone just thought they looked cool when they erected the statue.

He let out a chuckle as the thought ran through his mind. The statue itself wasn't anything special if he was honest. Two warriors, one wielding a sword and the other an axe, stood atop a cliff as a Beowolf seemed to be running away. It didn't take a genius to figure out the statue's message, 'We Will Triumph.' It was a good message, an inspiring one. Jaune couldn't help but smile at it as he placed his hands in his pants pockets.

The sudden sound of an explosion caught his attention, snapping him out of his train of thought. Looking back he saw two girls standing in the center of the crater. One was dressed all in white and had long white hair. The other he recognized from the ship as one of the girls who saw him vomit into the trashcan. The two argued as he approached over who was responsible. Another girl then joined the conversation as she held a vial filled with red dust. The girl in white became angered over what the one in black said and snatched the vial away before storming away.

He stopped to watch her haul her luggage past him, seeing her angered expression as she passed. He looked back to the crater and found that the girl in black had begun to walk away and the girl in red how sat in the center of the crater. "Welcome to Beacon." he barely heard her say.

"Need a hand?" he asked with an outstretched hand. "I'm Jaune."

"Ruby," she said as she took his hand and he helped her up to his feet. "Aren't you the guy who vomited on the ship?"

Jaunes simply stared at her as he let go of her hand. "Aren't you the girl who just exploded?"

"It was an accident!" she said.

"Mmhmm," he said in response as the two began to walk back towards the school.

"Look, I'm sorry Vomit-boy! That was the first thing that came to mind!" Ruby said in her defense.

"Vomit boy? Really?" Jaune asked as he stopped walking to look at her.

"Sorry!" Ruby said as she shied away from his gaze.

"If we're gonna start givin' each other nicknames I guess you're Crater-face," Jaune said as he smirked.

"I told you, that was an accident!" Ruby yelled.

"So was me throwing up." Jaune retorted. "How about we make a deal, you stop bringing up the fact I threw up, and I won't mention you blew up. Deal?" he asked with an outstretched hand.

"Deal!" she said quickly as she shook his hand. After the two let go of one another Jaune could see her eyes drift to his sword. "So, I got this thing." A giant scythe then expanded behind her and stabbed into the ground.

"Nice scythe." He said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"It's also a customizable, high impact, sniper rifle," she said as she lifted it and a rifle scope came out of the scythes handle.

"I bet that comes in handy. It got a name?" he asked with a short laugh.

"Oh, immensely! and her name is 'Crescent Rose'." Ruby said as she hugged her weapon before putting back into it's collapsed form. "So," her eyes drifted back to his sword. "What you got?"

An amused smirk made it's way onto his face as he grasped his blades handle. "Just this thing," he told her as he pulled it out. The blade itself was white with the outer edge was golden. Several grooves also ran along the center of the blade. The swords guard was black and had two yellow crescent moons beside one another on its center, and on both sides of the blade. The guard also had a small trigger located underneath it. The sword's grip was wrapped in black leather, and the sword's pommel was multi-colored.

"Ooo! What's it do?" She asked excitedly.

"Well, it slices, cuts, and stabs. Not in that order though." He said with a smirk.

"Really?" she asked as she rolled her eyes and also wore a smirk.

"It also does this!" he said as he pressed on the trigger under the blade's guard, causing the grooves on the blades to become red and flames to shoot out from the edge of the sword. Ruby stared wide-eyed at the blade before Jaune pressed the trigger again and the flames dissipated.

"How does it do that?! Is it 'cause of the sheath?! Do you have dust in it?! Is it housed in the hilt?! The guard?! Please tell me!" Ruby asked as she zipped around him until she stopped and hung onto his right arm.

"The sheath is just a sheath, Ruby," he told her, causing her to wear a frown. "The dust is, as you predicted, housed right here." He pointed to the swords pommel and the multitude of colors that adorned it.

Ruby removed herself from his arm as she outstretched her arms. "Can I see it? Please?" she asked as she used her puppy dog eyes.

Jaune shook his head as he looked down at her. Tossing the blade into the air Jaune grabbed it by its blade before offering the swords handle to her. "Here you are."

Ruby took the blade from him and began to inspect it, giving it a few swings as she did. She then started to inspect the pommel of the sword. "I see, those crystals aren't just ornamental but dust crystals. By pressing the button on the hilt you funnel dust to the blade, giving you an even more deadly attack." She then offered the blade back to him. "Did I get it right?"

"Yep! You really know your weapons," he said as he put his sword back in its sheath.

"Yeah, I'm kinda obsessed with weapons! They're just so cool!" Ruby said energetically.

"Nothing wrong with that. I'd show you my shield too, but it's still being made for me. I'll probably have to go to Vale to get it after classes start." Jaune told.

"Ooo, can I come when you do? If it's anywhere as cool as your sword, I wanna meet who made it! Maybe they can help me improve Crescent Rose!" Ruby said as she began to jump up and down.

"Yeah, sure," he told her.

"Really?!"

"Yeah, I don't see why not. We are friends," he said as he smiled.

"Really?! You'd be my friend?!" Ruby asked excitedly.

"Of course," he said as he smiled down at her.

The young reaper embraced her new friend in a tight hug. Jaune could only smile down at her as he placed a hand atop her head. He could see her face becomes slightly red as she looked up him before letting him go. "Sorry."

"It's ok, don't worry about it." Jaune told her.

"So, where do we go now?" she asked as they began to walk together again.

Jaune looked around and began to wonder the same thing. He then saw that everyone else was going in one direction. "Let's just follow the crowd. That should lead us to where we need to go." Ruby simply nodded as they followed where everyone else seemed to be headed. They soon found themselves in the meeting hall. A large crowd had already formed when they arrived, making getting close to the stage difficult. "Well, we made it."

"Looks like it," Ruby said as she began to look around the room.

"Ruby!" a voice sounded out. The two of them looked for the source and found it coming from the other girl from the ship, Ruby's sister. "Come on! I saved you a spot!"

"Coming, Yang!" Ruby yelled before turning to Jaune. "It was nice meeting you Jaune, hope we can talk later!" she said before running off to join her sister.

"Likewise, Ruby," Jaune said as he watched the young reaper run to her sister. Looking around Jaune found that there weren't many places close to the stage that he could get to. Instead he just simply leaned against the wall he stood by and watched as an older man with silver hair walked onto the stage.

"I'll...keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose – direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step." the older man said before stepping back.

Glynda Goodwitch then stepped forward and spoke, "You will all gather in the Ballroom tonight; tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."

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It didn't take long for everyone to get situated in the Ballroom. It was hard to find a place to get situated with almost every space having been occupied. Jaune would have much rather sleep outside, under the stars, but he would most likely be in trouble if he got caught, so he chose against it. After getting into his black tank top and white sweat pants Jaune made his way through the ballroom, trying to find somewhere he could sleep. As he did so, he could feel others watching him. The scars on his back most likely being the reason as the tank top he wore allowed others to see where they started on his left shoulder. He just sighed as he continued to look around the room for somewhere to sleep.

Eventually, he did find one place, far in the corner of the room. It had somehow not been taken yet, and Jaune quickly made his way over to make it his own. After setting a pillow and blanket down, he took out a sleeping pill and promptly swallowed it. They helped him sleep, but they didn't stop his nightmares. He could only hope one of his more frightening nightmares wouldn't revisit him this night. As he got comfortable, he began to see something out of the corner of his eye.

He watched as Ruby and Yang approached the girl with the bow from earlier and began to speak with her. As they did the girl in white, who now had her hair down, came up and she and Yang argue over something. Amidst the argument, Ruby began to look around as though to look for help. Her eyes met his own, and she gave him a small wave. He returned the gesture before she looked back at Yang and the other girl then looked back at him. She put her hands together and looked at him pleadingly. Jaune pondered whether to answer her pleas or to stay out of this quarrel.

_'You should go resolve this. It doesn't look like they will resolve it on their own.' a voice in his head said to him._

With a sigh, he rose and began to walk over to them. Ruby bore a toothy smile as he approached before turning back to the others. "What's the problem here?" he asked as he scratched at the back of his neck.

"None of your concern." the girl in white said.

"It is when you're causing such a commotion," he told her. "So, I ask again, what's the problem here?"

"These two are too loud," she said as she pointed at Ruby and Yang.

"I was just trying to make friends!" Ruby said in her defense.

"Perhaps now is not the ideal time to do so." the girl with the bow said.

"Aww come on, Blake!" Ruby said as she looked at her.

"Look, why don't we all just go lay down for the night. The last thing we need is for us to be at one another's throats tomorrow," he told them.

With a 'Hmph!' the girl in white turned and walked away from them. Jaune watched her walk away before turning to Ruby. "Thanks for helping, Jaune. Sorry I dragged you into this."

"Don't mention it, Ruby. What are friends for?" he told her, earning a smile from her.

"Who's this?" Yang asked as she looked Jaune up and down.

"Yang, this Jaune. Jaune, this is my sister." Ruby told them

"Hi."

"Sup."

"He's the guy who I met earlier. You know, the one who helped me after you left me." Ruby said as she glared at her sister.

"Oh, so this is Vomit-Boy! Good to know." Yang said as she took a step back.

Jaune turned to look at Ruby and sends her a glare as she scratched at the back of her head. Turning around he waved to them both as he headed back to his spot. "Night you two."

"Night, Jaune!" he heard Ruby say as what little light in the room was snuffed out. Despite the darkness, Jaune found his way back to his place. As he laid down he could feel his consciousness begin to fade as the pill he took earlier began to take effect. He turned to face the wall and pulled his blanket over himself. His eyelids grew heavy and soon found the light being overtaken by darkness once more as his consciousness faded.

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**AN: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, it was a lot of fun to write a RWBY story again. Special thanks to my friend and Beta Reader for this story WhiteNightBlade. He actually helped me get back into writing RWBY as I have beta'd several chapters of his in the past so please go check out his stuff, he's a really good writer.**

**Well, that's it for now. Hope to be getting chapters 2 and 3 out to you guys soon so stay tuned**

**Til next time!**


	2. Initiation

_**Chapter 2 - Initiation**_

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**Beta Reader: _WhiteNightBlade_**

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Jaune awoke from his slumber, thankfully this time not from a nightmare. He dreamed of nothing during the night, and that was far more preferable than nightmares. He rose up and looked out the window above him and found that the sun had just recently risen. His gaze turned to the room and saw that most everyone else still slumbered. He rose from the corner and carefully stepped between each the sleeping forms of those around him. Once he was past everyone, he grabbed his bag and made his way to the boy's bathroom. No one else was present as he set his bag down on the tile floor and pulled his clothes out.

He peered into one of the many mirrors as he washed his face. His hair was a bit disheveled, but that was nothing new. It came down to his shoulders, and he was tempted to tie it behind his head. He chose against it though. He had no stubble on his face as he had shaved before arriving, but he could see faint signs of it starting to grow back. He then turned and began to put on his clothes. First came his white pants with his black belt which bore the Arc crest on the buckle. Next was his black and gold combat boots that came up to the middle of the lower part of his legs. His white shirt was next, followed by his black jacket with the inside of it being red. Finally was his black fingerless gloves. All that remained was his blade, but he could only retrieve that once initiation was about to begin. He stuffed his sleeping clothes back into his bag and slung it over his shoulder.

He made his way out of the ballroom and made his way out into the courtyard. Being that it was still early morning hardly anyone was up. Those that were either conversed with one another were currently jogging around the school grounds, or they were reading. Jaune decided to take a look around the school, as he hadn't gotten the chance to do so the previous day.

He soon found himself back in the central courtyard, once more standing by Beacons statue. As he did, the sight of a nearby patch of trees caught his eye. It was situated close by one of the many rivers that flowed off the cliffs in front of Beacon, making it look like a perfect place to relax. The sounds of birds chirping leaves crunching, and the wind whistling was all too familiar to him as he entered the small patch of forest. He found the perfect spot by the river, under a giant oak tree. He took his place beside the tree's trunk, taking a deep breath as he did.

_'With such a tranquil setting such as this one would forget how dangerous the world is today.'_ the voice said to him.

Jaune turned to his left and found a middle-aged man standing by the trunk of the tree. He had short golden hair, wore ancient-looking armor, and had a long scar over his right eye. _'If only all the world could be like this; peaceful, tranquil, without conflict.'_

"Is that not why we are here? To ensure that all the world will look like this one day?" Jaune asked as he looked back to the field in front of him.

_'True. Though, such a thing is not easily accomplished.'_ the man said as he sat on the other side of the tree.

"If it was then it would have already been achieved, and we would not be here," Jaune said as brought his right knee up to his chest.

_'Fair enough, Jaune. I only hope, for your sake, that you will be able to see such a time as that.'_ the specter said as he leaned his head back against the tree's trunk._ 'Are you prepared for today?'_

"Yes. I just hope I'm able to avoid some of the more powerful Grimm during the initiation." Jaune said.

'That is unavoidable, Jaune. They will be drawn to you like moths to a flame.' said the man.

"I know! You've said that to me over a hundred times now." Jaune said with a heavy sigh. "I just hope no one else gets dragged into the fight."

_'That's all we can do; hope.'_ the man agreed. _'Though, I highly doubt any ancient Grimm reside in these forests. I'd question the staff of this academy if that were the case.'_

"Fair enough," Jaune said with a laugh. He got back to his feet as he looked to see the sun now fully shining in the sky. "I should head back to the school. Initiation should begin soon."

_'Indeed.'_ the man said as he watched Jaune walk past him. _'Believe in yourself, young one. Do that, and you shall not fall astray.'_ The man vanished then, leaving no trace of himself.

"Thank you, Victor." It did not take long for Jaune to make his way out of the small forest and into the cafeteria. Without much time he simply grabbed himself an apple and then headed towards the locker room.

As he entered he pulled out a piece of paper that told him the name of his locker. Inside he would find his sword and then be on his way to the cliffs. Two other students passed by him as he entered and seemed to be having a one-sided conversation as they walked beside one another. 'An interesting pair, those two.' he thought to himself as he looked for locker 636.

"Oh! Hey, Jaune!" Ruby said as he began to walk past her and Yang.

"Hey, Ruby. You ready for initiation?" he questioned.

"Yep! No more awkward small talk or 'getting-to-know-you' stuff. Today, I get to let my sweetheart do the talking." she told him as she grabbed Crescent and hugged it.

"Well, remember Ruby, you're not the only one who's going through initiation. If you wanna grow up, you're gonna need to meet new and learn to work together." Yang added.

"Uh, you sound just like dad!" Ruby complained as she placed her weapon on her waist. "I don't need to meet new people to grow up! I Drink Milk!"

"Well, what about when we form teams?" Yang questioned.

"Teams?" Jaune asked as he turned his attention to Yang.

"Yeah, we'll be forming teams today after initiation. You didn't know that?" Yang asked as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Nope."

"They didn't tell you that at your previous school?" Ruby asked with an arched brow.

"I never attended a combat school. I just took the entrance exam and was able to get in," Jaune told them as he scratched at the back of his head.

"Wow. You must be pretty good then, Definitely a good partner." Yang told him.

"Hope so. Well, guess I'll see you two at the cliffs. I need to get my sword." Jaune replied as he turned and continued to look for his locker. Turns out it was just another row over from where he was previously. The only problem was that the girl in white from yesterday stood in front of his locker. She currently seemed to be lost in her conversation with a girl with red hair and bronze armor listened uncomfortably to her. "Excuse me, can I get by, please? I need to get my stuff."

The white-haired girl was broken out of her trance as she turned to look at him, sending him a glare as did so. "Excuse me?"

"Umm...my locker?" Jaune said as he gestured to locker 636. The girl took a few steps back as he approached and retrieved his blade, buckling it onto his back. He then closed the locker before turning back around and seeing the white-haired girl still glaring at him. "Look, I think we may have gotten on the wrong foot yesterday. I'd rather us not have any bad feeling towards one another," he said with an outstretched hand. "I'm Jaune, Jaune Arc."

The girl looked at his hand for a moment before letting out a sigh and shaking it. "Weiss Schnee."

"Pleasure to meet you, Weiss," he said with a smile before turning to her companion. "And you as well miss...?"

"Pyrrha, Pyrrha Nikos. And the feeling is mutual, Jaune." Pyrrha said as they too shook hands.

As they let go of one another Weiss stepped closer to them and looked to him. "Wait, are you telling me you don't know who she is?!"

"Should I?" he asked as he looked at Weiss and then back at Pyrrha who currently bore a small smile on her face.

"She's THE Pyrrha Nikos! She graduated at the top of her class at Sanctum Academy!" she told him.

"Never heard of it," he told them.

"She won the Mistral Regional Tournament four times! A new record!"

"Congratulations," Jaune said as he looked to Pyrrha who now bore a wider smile.

"Thank you!" she said with a slight bow.

"She's on every box the Pumpkin Pete Marshmallow Flakes!" Weiss screamed as she threw her hands up in the air.

"I've...never eaten that," Jaune said as he looked back at Pyrrha again. "Sorry?"

"Don't be, it's not that healthy for you," she told him.

"Attention, all first-year students head to the Cliffs for the entrance exam. I repeat, Attention, all first-year students head to the Cliffs for the entrance exam."

"Well, seems we should get going," Jaune said as he began to leave the locker room.

Pyrrha and Weiss followed him, and they all raced to the cliffs. He could see for miles once he finally reached the cliffs. He stepped past the others, past the professors, and stood upon the edge of the cliff. The forest seemed to stretch on forever, even unto the mountains that lay far off in the distance. A gentle wind blew past him as he stared down into the forest. Part of him was tempted just to lean forward and let gravity do the rest, to be the first to take the plunge into the woods. But as he stared down into the depths of the forest, he could see the monsters that resided within look back at him.

They were waiting for him.

"Mr. Arc?" the voice of the headmaster called, making him turn to face the older man. "Please, stand beside your fellow initiates, we are about to begin."

"Yes, sir," Jaune said as he did as requested.

"Hey, you ok?" Ruby whispered to him worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm good," he whispered back.

"For years you have trained to become warriors, and today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest," Ozpin told them all.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... today." Glynda told them.

"What?! Ohh..." Ruby said.

"Partners will be decided by the first person you make eye contact with. That person shall remain your partner shall remain so for the rest of your time here at Beacon." Ozpin said before taking a sip from his mug.

"What?!" Ruby questioned.

"After you've partnered up make your way towards the northern edge of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you will die." Ozpin told them in a serious tone. "You will be monitored and graded upon your performance. Once you reach the northern part of the forest, you will find a temple that will contain several relics. Each pair must retrieve one of these relics and then make there way back here. Miss Goodwitch and I shall be waiting." One by one everyone began to be flung into the air by the by the plates they were instructed to stand upon. Jaune took a deep breath and shut his eyes, waiting to be tossed forward.

He felt the wind rush past him, faster then it did before, and opened his eyes to find him soaring through the air. He scanned the forest in front of him for something, anything, that could aid him in his landing. The thought of stabbing his blade into a tree entered his mind, as did using his semblance, but those thoughts were swiftly cast to the wayside as the sound of something began to fly towards him. He looked back to find a bronze and red spear racing towards the air.

Shifting his body slightly the spear just barely missed him before his hand took hold of it. The spear carried him into the canopy of the forest, as though it was being controlled, and embedded itself into a large tree. He gripped the spear firmly before pulling it out of the tree's trunk and landing down on the forest floor. After his landing, he looked at the spear in his hand. He knew he had seen this weapon, but could not remember to whom it belonged.

The crunching of leaves caught his attention as he whipped around to face some Grimm, but found only Pyrrha as she walked towards him. "Hello again~," she said as she waved at him. Her eyes then widened as Jaune pulled his arm back and threw the spear at her. Using her semblance, she brought her shield up to block but watched as her weapon flew by her head before it impaled in a Beowolfs neck, sticking it to a tree.

Her emerald eyes widened as she realized what had occurred and then looked back to him as the Grimm began to turn to dust. "You know, it's probably not the smartest idea to throw away your weapon in the middle of a Grimm infested forest," he told her with a smirk.

A laugh escaped her at his joke. "Yes, you are right. I had not thought of that beforehand. I assure you though, it will not happen again." she then pointed her right arm out and her spear flew to her hand.

"Your semblance, I'm guessing?" he asked.

"Polarity, yes. What is yours?" she asked.

"You'll see soon. I'd prefer not to use it when we're not in a fight." Jaune said as he looked around the area. "So, which way now, partner?"

"As I was descending, I saw a large clearing that way." she pointed in the direction of it.

"Think that's where the temple is?" he asked as he looked in the direction she pointed.

"Possibly. It is all we have to go on," the young spartan said as she looked back to him.

"Well then, let's get moving," Jaune said as he drew his sword.

"Right behind you, partner," she said in response as they began to make their way through the forest.

* * *

Deep within the Emerald Forest, a great beast awoke. It raided its massive head from where it lay between its front legs and looked out to see the light shine at the entrance to its lair. It had dwelled in these forests for over a century now, claiming it as it's own. Its blood red eyes opened as its form rose up from where it rested. Two more sets of eyes opened as it walked out of its den and into the light. It could sense something, something new.

Something had entered its territory, something strong and powerful.

Its instincts told it to stay where it was, to wait for the day when humanity was weak. But something else compelled it forward, almost as though it was being commanded to do so by the dark mistress herself. It sniffed the air, searching for this new threat. A deep growl escaped it's jaws as it found what it sought. The ground quaked slightly as it pressed through the forest, shaking and knocking down tree's as it did so.

* * *

"I... don't think this is it," Jaune told her as they stood outside of a cave. "We're looking for a temple, aren't we? Not a cave?"

"True. Plus, these drawings look like a warning to me." Pyrrha said as she looked at the paintings that adorned the wall of the cave.

Jaune peered into the cave as she examined the wall. No light shone at the caves end, nothing but pitch black darkness lay before them. Jaune too made his forward, peering into the almost endless shadow. He then looked down at the floor of the cave and quickly halted his movement. "Pyrrha, I don't think we should go in here."

"Jaune, what's wrong?" she asked worriedly as she turned to him.

"Look," he said as he pointed to some tracks. "Somethings in there. Something big." As if on queue ten pairs of orange eyes started to appear in the cave. And they began to get bigger. "Pyrrha, run!"

The two of them jumped away from the cave as the giant Deathstalker emerged, destroying the entrance of the cave. "Jaune! Are you okay?!" Pyrrha yelled as she raised her shield to block the debris that flew towards her.

"I'm fine!" he yelled back as he shielded his eyes with his arm. 'Damit, I knew this would happen!' It was as though he constantly radiated negativity; the Grimm never failed to find him. No matter where he seemed to go.

'You should probably find another area for this fight. You and your partner have no room here to fight.' Victor told him.

"Pyrrha, I suggest a tactical retreat!" He yelled as he started to run away from the Deathstalker.

"Good idea!" the champion yelled back as she chased after with the Deathstalker hot on their heels.

The two of them ran between tree's hoping that they would slow the beast down to some extent. It proved to be fruitless, as the Deathstalker simply destroyed the tree's in its way as it grew closer to them. To try and give them some distance between them and the Grimm Jaune began to cut through the trunks of tree's he ran past, hoping they would injure or at least hinder it. Pyrrha did the same, but their actions only seemed to anger it more as it grew ever closer.

Thinking on the run, Jaune split from Pyrrha and began to run in another direction. "Jaune! What are you doing?!" she yelled out to him.

"It can't chase us both! I'll meet you at the clearing now just go!" he yelled back as he continued to run, the Deathstalker following right behind him.

He continued to run until he knew he was far enough away from Pyrrha and turned to face the monster. 'This isn't much better from the last location.' Victor told him.

'I know! But at least I don't have to worry about Pyrrha getting hurt.' he said in response. 'Plus the tree's here will hinder its movements more then they will mine.'

'Fair enough.' Victor said

It stared at him as he readied his blade. It attacked with its stinger first, breaking two tree's as Jaune dodged the attack. Stabbing his sword into the tail Jaune was lifted into the air as the Deathstalker let out a deep hiss. He then withdrew his blade and fell onto it's back, stabbing the blade into one of the scorpion's eyes. Another hiss escaped the monster as it grabbed at him with its pincers. Leaping over the pincers, Jaune left his blade within the monsters eye. As his feet touched the ground again, he lunged for his blade, aiming for the trigger under his blades guard.

A smirk made it's way onto his face as he gripped his swords handle, but that smirk quickly vanished as one of the Deathstalkers pincers made contact with his chest. He was sent back by the attack, crashing through several trees as before he was able to plunge his blade into the earth and stop himself. When he finally came to a halt, he found he was no longer within the forest but rather a somewhat large clearing. He looked around briefly as he drew his sword out from the dirt.

"Jaune!" he heard from behind him as Pyrrha began to run in his direction. Scanning the tree line, Jaune found no sign of his foe and turned to meet Pyrrha.

"What were you thinking?! You could have been hurt!" she said as they stopped beside one another.

"I'm fine, Pyrrha. I knew that if we split up, we could lose it more easily. Sorry if I made you worry." he said with a smile. "But we should probably go and get one of the relics. I'm pretty sure that Deathstalker will be here soon."

"Smart!" she said quickly as the two of them ran towards the temple where several of there other initiates watched them run up.

A yell caught Jaunes attention, making him look up to see who it was. He found Ruby falling towards him. He stopped in his tracks and positioned himself beneath her, catching and holding her bridal style. Ruby's face became as red as her cape as she looked at Jaunes smiling face. "Th...Thanks, Jaune," she said as she averted her gaze.

"No prob, Ruby. How did you get here though?" he asked as he set her down. The young reaper simply pointed upward towards a large Nevermore.

"How could you leave me?!" Weiss screamed as she still held onto the Nevermore.

"I said to jump!" Ruby yelled back.

Weiss' grip then slipped, and Jaune watched as she too began to plummet towards the ground. "Are people just making a habit of this now?!" he asked as he once more caught a girl who had fallen from the sky. "Please tell me you guys aren't gonna make a habit of this?"

Weiss immediately squirmed and writhed in his grasp as she realized what kind of position they were in. "Let go of me!" she yelled as he placed her down.

Before either could say anything, further everyone else ran up to them. "Ruby!" Yang yelled. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, Yang. Though I don't know how much longer we will be with that Nevermore up there," she told her sister as the giant bird let out a loud shriek.

The Deathstalker then crashed through the tree's as it let out a deep hiss.

"Greeaat, now we can all die together," Yang said in an unamused tone.

"Not if I can help it!" Ruby said as she charged the Deathstalker.

"Ruby, no!" both Jaune and Yang yelled as they watched her run forward. Shifting Crescent Rose into its scythe form she swung at the scorpions head, but its armor deflected the attack. She fired a round into it, but it too did not affect it. Realizing she could not do this on her own, she began to run back just as the Nevermore started to do so.

"Damnit!" Jaune said as he began to run towards Ruby with Yang quickly following after him. The Nevermore fired several of its feathers at the three of them, one embedding itself in Ruby's cape and the rest blocking Jaune and Yangs path. The young reaper tried to free her cloak. With a growl, Jaune pulled the trigger on his blade and coated his blade in fire before he began to cut his way through the feathers towards Ruby.

The Deathstalker reached her first however and raised it's stinger up to attack her. Ruby closed her eyes to not see the oncoming attack. Before Jaune could do anything to stop it a white blur zoomed past him and Yang. Re-opened her eyes to see her partner standing before her, her blade stabbed into the ground as she had made a wall of ice to block the Deathstalkers attack. The two of them conversed for a brief moment before Yang ran up and hugged her sister. "Not to ruin the moment, but right now's not really the time for hugs!" he told them as he looked between the Deathstalker and the Nevermore as it began to make another pass.

"He's right. We need to go!" Ruby said as the two of them began to make their way to the others. Before they could the Deathstalker lunged at them with its pinders, and Jaune pushed them out of the way as the giant claws grabbed hold of him. "Jaune!" Ruby screamed as she looked up at Jaune, but her eyes widened as she saw what had happened.

Jaune held the pincers apart with his forearms and began to force them apart. Miló then became embedded in one of the Deathstalkers eyes, resulting in another hiss to escape the Grimm as it pulled it's pincer back.

"Run!" he yelled as he helped both girls up and made their way back to where the others waited.

"Jaune, how did you-?!"

"Not now, just go!" he ordered as the sound of ice shattering sounded out. Jaune looked back to find that the Deathstalker had once again begun to chase him, forcing him to whirl around and ready himself.

Before he could devise an idea, the girl with orange hair blast forward and slammed her hammer into the beasts head, sending her back to where he now stood. Miló was then brought back towards him as Pyrrha took her place beside him as the boy in green stood beside her.

"Ok, names. Now," he told the two newcomers.

"I'm Ren, that's Nora," he said as he readied his pistols.

"Nora!" Nora said energetically as she readied her hammer.

"Alright. I'm Jaune, this is Pyrrha," he said in response.

"Hello," Pyrrha said.

"So, what's the plan?" Ren asked as they watched the Deathstalker. Jaune looked for an opening on the beast. Its eyes were the most obvious pick, but he would need to get in close to drive his blade in far enough to kill it. He spied the stinger, picturing cutting it off and having Nora hammer it through its armor.

He then spied the scorpion's stomach. It didn't have armor down there.

"Get its attention, I have an idea!" he told them as it began to charge at them. Ren nodded in agreement as he ran forward and began to shoot at the Grimms eyes. Nora shifted her hammer into its grenade launcher form and began to unload on it as she kept her distance. Jaune and Pyrrha then charged together.

The Deathstalker snipped at Ren as he ran around it, but the boy proved to be too fast. It then saw Jaune and Pyrrha running at it and stung at them with its tail. Pyrrha blocked the attack and slashed at the stinger itself. A grenade soared and blasted into the right side of the scorpion's face, blinding it even more then it was previously. Jaune took his moment then and slid underneath the beast, stabbing his blade into its underbelly as he slid all the way under it till he emerged behind it.

The deathstalker shrieked in pain as it fell to the ground, it's limbs and tail falling limp as it did so.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as their foe had fallen before them. They then turned to find the other four having difficulty with the Nevermore as it soared out of there reach. "We need to go help them!" Pyrrha said as she began to run to their aid.

Jaune followed after her but found himself being gripped by the Deathstalkers pincers as he ran past it, it's few remaining eyes training on him as it held him in its grip. He let out a pained yell as it squeezed him, causing the others to turn back to him. "Guys! The stinger!" he yelled in a strained voice as the pincer began to crush him.

He tried to activate his semblance again but found that it wouldn't activate now that he was being crushed. As the Deathstalker brought him close to its mandibles, Ren leaped forward and latched onto the tail. He then began to fire at the stinger until it hung by only a few strands of flesh. The Grimm swung it's tail from side to side, sending Ren hurling into a nearby tree. Nora yelled out to him as Pyrrha threw her shield and severed it completely. The stinger lodged itself into the scorpions head, piercing right through its armor. He watched as Nora shot upward with Pyrrhas aid and then came crashing down and sending the stinger straight through the Deathstalkers head.

This time it began to fade and turn to dust, letting them know it was truly dead now. Pyrrha rushed over to him and helped him up off the ground. "Are you ok?" she asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, my aura took most of the damage," he told her as he stood up-right. Before they speak anymore the sound of gunfire rang out through the clearing. Yang and Ruby stood on top of two of the pillars of the fallen temple. Their bullets didn't seem to be doing much damage as the Nevermore circled around the temple. The Nevermore descended toward the two sisters with its beak opened wide. Yang leaped into its mouth and fired into it the monster's mouth.

The Nevermore cried out as it crashed through the pillars of the temple and crashed into the ground. Yang was flung from the bird's mouth, crashing into a tree. Weiss sped forward and stabbed her sword her blade into the bird right wing, encasing it in ice. Yang then sprung forth, and her hair glowed golden as her eyes were now red. With a punch she smashed the ice, destroying the Nevermores wing in the process.

The girl with the bow was sent flying forward after a shot from Cresent Rose. She stabbed into the Nevermores neck, leaving a deep wound there. The Nevermore screeched in pain as it pecked at her. The girl disappeared and then reappeared in another place as Yang upper-cutted the bird's beak. A red blur then zoomed forward, leaving rose petals behind as it grew close to the Nevermore. Crescent Rose was placed o the freshly made wound. With a glyph and shot fired from Crescent Rose the Nevermores head flew into the air, leaving it's decapitated body behind.

"Impressive," Jaune said as he watched the Nevermore begin to fade away.

"Very," Pyrrha added.

"They make a good team," Ren said as his he put Stormflower away.

"Not as good as us, Renny!" Nora added. Jaune couldn't help but chuckle as he walked back to the ruined temple. "You guys were awesome! Not as awesome as us, but still awesome!" she told them as Ruby and the others met them at the temple.

"You all did very well." the girl in the bow told them.

"Thanks. I didn't catch your name." Jaune said as he put his blade back into its sheath.

"Blake, Blake Belladonna."

"Jaune Arc." the two shook hands before Jaune walked over to the temple with Ruby following after him. He looked between the two remaining relics, a knight and a rook. Ruby took the knight as Jaune took the rook, flashing one another a smile as they put the chess pieces away.

"We should start heading back to the cliffs now," Ruby said as she and Jaune rejoined the group.

"Indeed. We should make haste; we should not stay out here in the opening." Weiss said as she began to walk back towards the cliffs.

Everyone began to head in the direction that had flown from, but a sudden, all too familiar, rumble in the earth caught his attention. Pyrrha looked back to with a worried look on her face. "Jaune? What's wrong?"

Everyone turned to see what was wrong and watched as Jaune grabbed the hilt of his blade as he whirled around. The forest on the other side of the clearing began to disperse as the rumbling in the ground began to grow louder and more intense. Everyone readied their weapons again as their foe presented itself, causing them all to feel a chill run down their spine.

The first thing they saw as it came into view was the head of a lion. It's mask covered the entirety of its skull, and a thick mane that was stained red grew from its neck. The head of a goat rose from it's back, one horn was broken, and the left side of its mask was shattered leaving it one eye. Its third head rose up from behind it and looked down at them as it opened its jaws. It's long fangs dripped with venom causing the grass it fell upon to wither and die.

It rose onto its hind legs as it came to a stop. It's six eyes locked onto Jaune as he glared at the monster and drew his blade. A loud roar echoed throughout the forest, letting all who could hear it know that the King of this forest had awoken.

* * *

**AN: Let me know what you all think in a review. Hope you're enjoying it so far.**


	3. Emerald Forest Showdown

_**Chapter 3 - Emerald Forest Showdown**_

* * *

**Beta Reader - _WhiteNightBlade_**

* * *

Ozpins eyes widened as he stared at the scene before him. He knew that the forest was infested but to have a Chimera of all things to show itself was not something he expected. A Grimm as old as it appeared usually stay dormant during the initiations.

Something must have drawn it out, but what?

"Ozpin we need to get down there!" Glynda told him.

"I agree, Glynda. Evacuate the forest, I will not let my students face such a creature!" he told her as he sent an urgent message to Port and Oobleck.

"Attention all students, evacuate the Emerald forest at once! A Chimera is in the vicinity! I repeat, a Chimera is in the vicinity!" Glynda yelled into her scroll, sending the message throughout the forest.

The two professors then ran to the launchers and launched themselves into the Emerald Forest. They could only pray that they would not be too took in a deep breath as a powerful gust of wind rushed past him. He could smell the stench of death on the wind as the Grimm continued to bellow. He drew his blade as it finally ceased its roar and fell back onto all fours.

* * *

"That's...that's a Chimera!" Weiss told them.

'Well, it seems I stand corrected.' Victor spoke.

'Victor, not now!' Jaune told the spirit.

'Apologies.' Victor said.

"A what?" Yang asked as she cocked her gauntlets.

"A Chimera. It's a rare Grimm, one that few hunters can claim they've faced. Even fewer can claim they survived such an encounter. It is not a Grimm one can face by themselves." Weiss told them.

"What should we do?" Blake asked as she drew her blade.

"We fight it!" Ruby said as she began to charge, but Jaune grabbed her.

"No, not here. Even together we will have difficulty fighting it here. This area is its home, it knows it far better then we do." Jaune spoke. "We need to find a place where we would have the advantage. So let's go!" They all followed him as he ran to their right, back into the forest. The Chimera gave chase and crashed through the trees as it came up alongside them. It lunged at them crashing through several trees. Jaune swung at the beast, but his blade bounced off its mask. Nora slammed her hammer into its side, sending it to the ground.

"Take that!" Nora said triumphantly.

"Nora!" Ren yelled.

"Sorry, Ren!" Nora said as she continued to run.

The Chimera got back up in mere seconds, shaking its head before giving chase once more. Ren and Blake began to fire at it as it chased them, but their bullets bounced off of its armor as they were pellets. They soon found themselves leaving the forest and opened another clearing. Ancient ruins surrounded them now. Jaune spun on his heel and readied his blade as the Chimera came barreling through the tree line, letting out a roar as it did so.

"Spread out, give it more targets!" Jaune commanded.

Everyone, excluding himself, jumped out of the way as the Chimera charged forward. Jaune ran to meet it, and as it swiped at him, he slid under it as he did the Deathstalker. He slashed at it hooved legs before he was kicked in the chest, sending him back into a tree. His aura took most of the blow, but he felt his chest ache as he rose to his feet. The Chimera's lion head turned to him and opened its massive jaws. Jaune could see a fire begin to form in its throat before it shot out. He pressed down on the trigger of his sword, but before he could swing his blade, a red blur grabbed him and moved him out of harm's way.

Jaune found himself standing atop one of the decrepit walls once he regained his sense. Ruby had stabbed her scythe into the stone and began to fire at the Chimera as it turned and growled at them. Before it could lunge at them, Yang punched it three times in the ribs as Nora slammed her hammer into its lion head. The two huntresses smiled for a brief moment before the snakehead whirled around and smacked them away. The snake then spits venom at the two of them, but Blake and Ren got them both out of the way before the poison touched the ground, eroding it away as it did so.

"Ren, Blake, go for its tail!" Jaune told them as he hopped down off the bridge and rejoined the fight.

Pyrrha did so as well from the other bridge, and the four of them charged together. Ren began to fire at the snakes head as Blake started to attack the base of the tail where no armor protected it. Jaune and Pyrrha kept the two other heads busy as they struck in unison, cutting at the flesh that was not covered by its bony armor. A bolt of lighting then shot out at them from the Goats head, sending them both back.

"Lighting?! Really?!" Yang yelled as her eyes turned red and hair began to glow. Nora simply smirked as she and Yang charged back into the fray.

The chimera swiped at them again as Pyrrha deflected the blow with her shield as Jaune slashed at it's exposed chest. Another roar sounded as the Chimera brought its other front leg up and swatted at them, this time hitting its prey and sending them both crashing into the bridge to it's right. It moved to breathe fire once more, but a punch from Yang sent it to the ground as it's mask cracked slightly. Ren and Blake then charged in unison and moved to sever the tail. Ren dug his blades into its base as Blake jumped above it. She hurled herself forward with her semblance and cut the Snake away from the rest of its body.

The Snake writhed on the ground as the Lion and Goat heads roared in pain. A swift kick from its back legs sent the two hunters flying as the goat began to channel electricity once more. A bolt of lighting came down upon Ren, but Nora moved in front of the attack, absorbing its power. A devilish smirk spread across her face as she gripped her hammer firmly and sped towards the Chimera, slamming Magnhild into its side with all her force.

The Chimera crashed through the wall and as it went to recover it's footing it stumbled. Nora went in for the kill but was hit by a fireball as she grew close. The blast sent her back, crashing into Yang and sending them both to the ground. The Chimera this time was able to regain its footing and let out a deafening screech from the Goats head that forced everyone to cover their ears.

Jaune felt as though his ears were going to burst before he saw the Lions head begin to fire another fireball at him. He pushed Pyrrha out of the way before the blast hit him, engulfing him in flames.

"JAUNE!" both Pyrrha and Ruby yelled.

The flames faded after a moment and revealed Jaune standing with his arms covering his face, a white glow covering his body. His jacket was signed, and parts were on fire as he dropped his arms to glare at the Chimera. The lion growled at him before it stood once more on its hind legs and bellowed into the forest, sending a blast of wind outward from itself as it did so.

"What's it doing?!" Blake called out. Jaune wondered that himself before a chorus of roars sounded off in response.

It just called its pack.

A horde of Beowolves rushed out from the Emerald Forest as a flock of small Nevermores descended upon them the forest canopy. With the horde now coming to the Chimera's aid Jaune found himself fighting the Chimera with only Pyrrha and Ruby to back him up now.

The Chimera fell back onto all fours with a thud switched its gaze between the three of them. A growl escaped it before it lunged towards them. Ruby sped behind it and began to open fire as both Jaune and Pyrrha jumped up and cut at its sides. They were soon sent flying as the Chimera's wings extended, hitting them in the process. Jaune was flung to the bridge that stretched over the vast chasm as Pyrrha crashed through a pillar. Ruby lunged at the Chimera in a rage, but a flap from its wings sent it into the air.

Jaune pushed himself back to his feet but was forced back down as the Chimera stomped on him. He let out a groan of pain which turned into a yell as the Chimera extended its claws, stabbing into him. The claws pierced into his shoulders. Before his flesh could be ripped from his body, Pyrrha thrust her spear into the Chimera's shoulder as Jaune stabbed his blade into the leg that pressed him into the bridge. The leg raised for a moment and pressed down on him with more force, breaking the bridge.

Jaune held on to his blade and ripped down the Chimeras paw as he fell, splitting in two. He then fell into the chasm as Pyrrha screamed his name. She reached out her hand to him, but he had fallen too far already. He felt a tug on his sword as her hand glowed for a brief moment. His vision then was obstructed as he fell past the mist and they saw him no more.

"JAUNE!" Ruby screamed as she watched her friend fall, tears stinging her eyes.

Pyrrha stared wide-eyed into the chasm as her partner fell. The Chimera let out a triumphant roar as he disappeared. It soon turned into a howl of pain again as Pyrrha drove her javelin further into the beast's shoulder. Ruby saw her chance at that moment and placed her scythe under the Goats head. A shot rang out, and the Chimeras head was removed from its body, leaving only the Lion head remaining. The Chimera jumped into the air, throwing Ruby from it's back. Pyrrha stayed on the monsters back, holding onto her spear as she twisted and pushed it in further into the beast.

Her grip soon faltered, and she found herself dangling as the Chimera spun in the air, flipping itself so that it was upside-down. Her grip loosened on her spear and she found herself in free-fall. She brought her shield up to brace herself as she approached the ground but found herself caught by some force and brought gently to the ground. She looked up and saw Glynda Goodwitch standing above her with the other professors standing beside her.

"Are you ok, miss Nikos?" Ozpin asked as he helped Pyrrha off of the ground.

"No, Headmaster. Jaune, he...he..." Pyrrha began to say. Ozpin closed his eyes and looked away from his student, realizing what she was going to say, before glaring up at the Chimera.

"Bart, Peter, escort the student to the bridge. We shall deal with this beast." Glynda told them as she pushed her glasses up on her face.

"No! This is our fight! We are NOT leaving!" Yang yelled as she smashed in a Beowolves mask.

"Now is not the time for revenge, young one. Now we must get back to Beacon!" Oobleck told her as he set a group of Nevermores on fire.

"If we stay here we are going to get overwhelmed! We need to go!" Weiss said as she stabbed Myrtenaser up through a Beowolves skull.

"But, Jaune..." Ruby whimpered as she looked over at the chasm as the Chimera let out another roar.

"We...can do nothing for him now. We need to get out of here." Blake said as she cut the head off a Beowolf and then shot another.

Glynda pointed her riding crop at the chasm and used the debris around her to make a bridge to the other side. "Go, now!" she commanded.

Yang looked back to the forest and saw even more Grimm rushing towards them. They almost seemed to be endless. "Damnit," she said with gritted teeth as she ran with the others to the other side of the chasm.

Oobleck and Port defended the makeshift bridge until they were all across. Once across Glynda used the rubble and fired it at the Grimm, taking out many of them in the process. She and Ozpin stood back to back as the Chimera flew over them as it readied another fireball. Ozpin stabbed his cane into the ground and formed a forcefield around himself and Glynda as it grew close to them. He then jumped and began to attack the beast as it flew down towards him and Glynda.

* * *

As Jaune fell passed the fog barrier, he turned to look at the chasm floor. His speed increased with each passing moment, and he closed his eyes as he activated his semblance. He slammed into the chasm floor, leaving a small crater as he did so. After a few moments, he began to crawl out o the hole he had just made and laid on the ground as he let out a pained groan. "If not for my semblance I'd be dead right now," he told himself as took several deep breaths with his blade slipping from his grip.

His semblance, Density Control, allowed him to both increase and decrease the density in his body. It allowed him to survive his fall and would aid him in returning to the fight as well.

'You have a plan, I assume?' Victor asked as he looked to the chasms entrance.

"I do," Jaune said as he took hold of his sword and pushed himself back up to his feet.

'Then I suggest you execute this plan quickly.' Victor said as he turned to look at several pairs of red eyes staring at Jaune.

"On it," he responded as he ran towards the wall of the chasm.

He placed his foot upon the wall as he decreased his density and then began to run upward. The sounds of battle grew louder and louder as he went up the wall. The Chimera's distinct roar with a chorus of howls following soon after it echoed as he passed the fog barrier. He could once again feel the warmth of the sun as he grew close to the top of the chasm. He could not focus on that relief however, as the short time limit he could keep his body in that state grew shorter with each passing second.

He reached the chasms entrance with three seconds to spare and flung himself into the air as he reached the top. He then landed upon one of the archways that stood over the bridge that once stretched across the chasm. He turned his head to look over his shoulder to see the shocked faces of the others before he turned back to see the Chimera flying overhead. His eyes met his foes as another roar escaped it and it began to fly towards him.

As it grew near, he leaped over it and stabbed his blade into it's back. The wind pushed his hair back as the Chimera soared upward. As it did Jaune grabbed hold of Miló as he drove his blade further into its backside. With both weapons in hand, he forced the Chimera to fly downwards, towards the ancient tower. As they grew close, Jaune withdrew both blades and leaped from it's back as it crashed into the tower.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha yelled as she ran up to him with the others following her. "I thought you were dead! How did you...?"

He smiled at her as he tossed her Miló. "I'll explain later, Pyrrha. Right now," he turned to the tower, "we have a fight to finish."

The Chimera burst from the rubble with one wing now broken, and the right side of its mask was now missing. Its right eye glowed menacingly as it faced them.

"Seriously?! Why won't this thing die!" Yang said as she reloaded Ember Celica.

"It's on its last legs, we can finish it here," Blake told them.

"Indeed. One last combined attack should put it down for good." Ren said as he readied StormFlower.

"Let's break its legs!" Nora said.

"Nora..." Jaune said as he looked back at her, "I like the way you think."

He then looked back to the Chimera as it tried to regain its balance. "We attack, together," he told them as his eyes turned golden.

Everyone leaped forward then. Ruby attacked first, placing Crescent Rose under the wing that had yet to be broken and cutting it off. Weiss encased the front leg in ice as Yang and Blake crippled then cut off the left hind leg. Ren and Nora crippled it's right hind leg as Pyrrha and Jaune attacked its head.

As the Lion roared in pain Pyrrha thrust her spear into its mouth. Jaune then stabbed his blade into its skull and ran down it's back, slicing it in two. They withdrew from their foe as its body began to turn to dust. Jaune turned to the others, to his team, and watched as the other Grimm departed on the other side of the chasm. His eyes returned to their standard blue as he placed his blade back in its sheath.

He stepped between them all as he walked to the edge of the bridge as Ozpin and his staff approached from their side.

"So, how'd we score professor?" he asked.

The headmaster simply smirked at his student in response.

* * *

Later that day Jaune found himself standing beside his partner as their picture appeared upon the screen above them. Beside them were Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie as they had retrieved the same relics they had from the forest they were to be put into a team.

"Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, Pyrrha Nikos, and Lie Ren. You four retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward you will work together as Team JNPR. Led by," Ozpin shifted his gaze to him, "Jaune Arc." Jaunes eyes widened slightly as Ozpin announced him the leader of the team. He looked to his team to find Nora hugging Ren as Pyrrha smiled at him. She then punched him in the arm for some reason.

"Congratulations, young man," Ozpin told him with a smile.

Jaune looked to the Headmaster as Victor materialized beside him. 'Aye, you've done exceptionally well.' Victor told him as he smiled as well. He wouldn't go that far, but he was glad that both of them thought so. He gave a slight bow to them both as Ruby, and the others were summoned onto the stage; with Ruby being named the leader of her team.

Jaune smiled at the young reaper as her sister embraced her and thought that his time at Beacon indeed would be nothing like he had experienced before.

* * *

**AN: Well, hope the fight was good for you guys. I honestly feel it could have been better, but that's just me. ****I envisioned the Chimera looking like the ones you fight in Dragons Dogma. Aside from the wings of course.**

**Now that the start of the fic is done from here on things get a lot more fun, at least on my end anyway.**

**Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Til next time.**


	4. First Day

_**Chapter 4 - First Day**_

* * *

**Beta Reader: **_**WhiteNightBlade**_

* * *

After the teams were formed, they were each assigned a room in the dorms. That was where Jaune headed to now as he was pelted with questions.

"How did you survive?!" Weiss asked.

"Are you hurt at all?!" Pyrrha asked as she looked him over.

"Was it your semblance?! Is it like mine?!" Ruby asked as she too looked him over.

"Maybe you should let him answer before you continue to ask him the same question," Blake said as she followed the group.

"Agreed," Ren said.

Jaune suddenly stopped and turned to them all, sending both Blake and Ren a thankful smile before he addressed the questions. "Pyrrha, I assure you, I am fine. The wounds the Chimera inflicted were nothing more than some scratches, shallow wounds," he told her as he moved his jacket to show where the claws had pierced his skin.

"Still, you should go get seen for them. Even the smallest wounds can become infected," the spartan told him.

"Pyrrha's right. Don't let your pride be your downfall." Weiss told him.

"Pride has nothing to do with it, but, alright. Once our things are in the dorm I'll go get my wounds looked at," he told her.

"Thank you, Jaune," Pyrrha said in response.

"Now, back to your question Ruby," he said, making the young girl perk up. "You were right. It was my semblance that allowed me to survive my fall. Though, it's not like your semblance."

"Awwww," Ruby said as she hung her head slightly, disappointed she was wrong.

"Jaune, what exactly is your Semblance?" Pyrrha asked intrigued.

"My semblance is Picnokinesis," he told her.

"Picno-whatsit?" Yang asked confused.

"I can control the density of my body." he clarified.

"Oh, cool!" Nora said. "...What does that mean?"

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose as Jaune let out a chuckle. "Here, maybe a demonstration would help more than explaining," he said as he drew his sword. He then pulled up his sleeve on his left arm and placed the blade on his forearm. Everyone's eyes widened as they realized what he was doing and before they knew it, he had pulled the blade across his arm.

Ruby grabbed his arm to inspect it and was shocked to find that there was no wound where the blade cut.

"By increasing the density of my arm, I was able to shield myself from taking any damage. It was how I survived my fall," he told her as she continued to hold his arm.

"It's like armor!" she exclaimed.

"That's one way of looking at it, yeah," he said as he sheathed his blade.

"That doesn't explain how you were able to get out," Weiss said.

"I was getting to that," he said as he looked over to her and then back to Ruby. "In addition to increasing my density I can also decrease it as well. I can become light as a feather. And I can also," his hand then phased through Ruby's own, causing her to jump back. "phase through any object."

"Your semblance is so cool, fearless leader! You're invincible!" Nora yelled.

"Not quite, but thanks, Nora," Jaune told her.

"Anytime, Fearless Leader!" she saluted with a toothy grin.

Jaune smiled in return before turning back tot he dorms and making his way towards them. Their dorm was on the second floor of the dormitory, and conveniently across from team RWBY's dorm. The dorm itself wasn't anything too special, but enough for the four of them. The beds were all against the wall on the left side of the dorm, two on each side of the window that was in the room. Ren and Nora took the two beds on the left of the window, the ones closest to the dorm's door, as Jaune and Pyrrha took the two on the other side of the window.

Jaune claimed the bed closest to the corner of the room and placed his bag at the foot of the bed. He put his blade beside his bed and then laid down on it. The bed was comfy, much more so then what he was used to. He couldn't say Beacon didn't try to make their student's comfortable, that's for sure. He felt like staying there till he'd fall asleep, but looking down at his bloodstained jacket reminded him of his promise. Spinning around while still on the bed he brought his feet to the side of it before setting them on the floor. He then pushed himself up as he grabbed his weapon.

"I'm heading to the infirmary. Get this wound checked out before tomorrow," he told his team as he headed towards the door.

"Oh, I'll go with you!" Pyrrha said as she stopped putting her things away.

Jaune was a bit surprised but didn't pay it any mind. Having someone else accompany him wouldn't hurt. "Alright then. I need to go put this in the lockers then we can head over," he told her.

"Lead the way," she said as they both exited the room.

They first headed to the lockers, where Jaune put his blade back into the locker he found it in earlier. "I swear, I did not put this in here yesterday."

Pyrrha couldn't help but giggle, making Jaune shake his head in response. "Perhaps one of the teachers is messing with you." she offered.

"That wouldn't surprise me, especially after they launched us into the forest," he said as he closed the locker.

As the two left the locker room, Pyrrha decided to try and get to know her partner. They had no time to do so till now, so it seemed like the right time. "So, Jaune, if you don't mind me asking, where are you from?"

"I'm originally from Anima, I lived outside of Mistral with my family on the western side of the continent." he turned to her as they walked beside one another. "What about you?"

"I'm from Anima as well, from the city of Argus to be precise. It's in the northern part of the continent." Pyrrha told him.

"Is that where you attended combat school? Sanctum, correct?" he asked.

"Yes, it's close to the city. Everyone was devastated when I chose to come here over Haven Academy." Pyrrha said as she placed her right hand on her left arm.

"Well, I'm glad you chose Beacon if it's any consolation," he told her with a smile.

Pyrrha smiled back at him. "Thank you, Jaune."

The two walked in silence for a short moment before Jaune remembered something. "Pyrrha?" she looked to him. "I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Yes?"

"Why did you throw your spear at me in the forest?"

Her eyes grew widened as she averted her gaze. She felt her face grow hot as she could feel him staring at her, waiting for her answer. "I...I saw you falling and thought I would help." Not a lie, but not completely true either.

"Really? There are safer ways to go about doing that," he said with a chuckle.

"I'm sorry," she said as she covered her face in shame. And also to hide her blush from him.

"Eh, it's okay. It all worked out in the end," he told her as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Just, try to refrain from doing so again, please? I'd rather not get comfortable with having to dodge a spear." Pyrrha couldn't help but chuckle at his joke, even though she still felt embarrassed over the whole situation.

As the two looked back to the path they walked on they found that they were close to the doors of the infirmary. They made their way inside and were taken to a room so as Jaune could be seen. After a few minutes a woman in a doctors coat. She had auburn hair, emerald eyes, pale skin, and stood a head shorter then Pyrrha.

"Hello, my name is Angela. I am the head of the infirmary here at Beacon," she told them with a smile. "So, why are you here today? Gotta say it's not a good sign that you come here on your first day."

"I know," Jaune said as he scratched the back of his neck. "During initiation, I was injured. My partner," he pointed at Pyrrha. "told me to come and get examined to make sure I would be ok."

The doctor nodded her head as she stepped close to him, "I see. It was a good idea, no doubt about that. You may be becoming a huntsman but you shouldn't ignore an injury. even the small ones can be deadly."

"That's what I told him," Pyrrha said.

"Smart girl," Angela said as she looked to Pyrrha and then back to Jaune. "Now then, please take off your coat and shirt so that I can see your wounds."

"Alright," Jaunes answered as he slipped out of his coat and then placed it on the bed that was in the room. He then removed his shirt and placed it beside his jacket as Angela examined his two new wounds.

Pyrrha could not help but stare at him, her cheeks turning pink as she did so. Jaune was chiseled figure and looked every bit a huntsman. Several scars also adorned his body, no doubt due to his encounters with Grimm before attending Beacon. Angela inspected his wounds, tilting her head a bit as she did so. "Well, these wounds aren't too severe. Tell me, what Grimm inflicted these wounds?" she asked as she wrote on her clipboard.

"A Chimera," he told her.

"A Chimera?!" she asked surprised. "Huh, didn't think a Grimm like that would be so close to Beacon."

"It's not anymore," he said.

"That's good to hear," she said as she began to walk around him. "Its claws didn't appear to go all the way, and thankfully didn't puncture anything maj-!" she stopped suddenly, her eyes growing wide.

Jaune closed his eyes and bore what only could be described as a pain expression. Pyrrha saw this and began to worry. Breaking out of her haze she made her way over to them and moved to see what it was the doctor had found. "What is it?! What's wrong?!" she too stopped and stared, shocked by what she was looking at.

Upon Jaunes back were four long scars that stretched from his left shoulder down to his right hip. Wounds such as these were more often than not fatal. He also bore a strange tattoo on his right shoulder, but the scars were what Pyrrhas eyes focused on.

Jaune looked over his shoulder at the two of them. "You know, staring at them doesn't help anyPyrrha looked up at him and averted her gaze from his own. He then turned around and crossed his hands over his chest. "So, what do you think doc? I need stitches or something?"

"Just a few to be on the safe side. I'll be back in a minute," she told him as she exited the room.

An uneasy silence filled the room as Jaune and Pyrrha waited for the doctor to return. Jaune knew not what to say to her, and she him. She wanted to know what happened but did not want to pry, to press into wounds that have long been healed. He went to sit back on the bed and she once more saw the tattoo he had on his right shoulder. It was a golden horseshoe with a crown at the top and a bow with an arrow on the string stretching from the bottom right of the horseshoe to the upper left. It was unlike anything she had ever seen before, which wasn't saying much since she didn't know many who had tattoos.

"Jaune?" she asked, earning his attention. "That tattoo, does it mean anything? I've never seen one like it."

Jaunes eyes widened for a moment before he brought his left hand and placed it over the tattoo. "It was something me and three of my friends did together a while back. I guess you could say it's a symbol of our bond." he smiled at the memory of his friends, of his brothers.

Seeing him smile brought a smile to her own face. As she was about to say something more the door opened once more and the doctor re-entered the room with a nurse. The two of them then came over and cleaned the wounds before they began to sow them closed. After they were done Jaune redressed and the two of them left the infirmary, ready to get some well-earned rest.

* * *

'So, Victor, any strategic exits you have to suggest?' he asked the specter.

_'Jaune, I know you're bored, but at least try to pay some attention. There could be something for you to learn.'_ the specter answered.

A sigh escaped him as he focused on the lesson. Professor Port was currently regaling the class with a story from his youth. It wasn't a bad story, though he overexaggerated things far too much. Jaunes eyes wandered around the room and found most everyone else not paying attention. His gaze stopped on Ruby as she drew something in her notebook. He also saw Weiss become more and angrier as she too watched Ruby not paying attention. The sight made him chuckle before he let out a loud yawn, catching everyone's attention.

"Mr. Arc, do you find my lesson boring?" Port asked him.

Jaune sat up straight as he met the older man's gaze. "No sir, I'm just tired after what happened yesterday."

"Yes, that does make sense. It's not everyday one fight a beast like a Chimera during their initiation." Port said as he stroked his mustache. "Well, since we are on the topic, would you care to demonstrate to your fellow students what it takes to be true huntsman?"

"Of course, Professor," he told him.

"Excellent! Now step forward, and face your opponent!" Port told him as he gestured to a large cage that was not there a second ago.

Jaune went and retrieved his blade and returned to the room, drawing it and readied to fight. His eyes drifted over to his team as they began to cheer him on.

"Fight well, Jaune!" Pyrrha said.

"Go get 'em, Fearless Leader! Show that monster who's boss!" Nora said as she jumped up onto the desk.

"Represent team JNPR!" Ren said as he waved a small flag that had team JNPR's name on it.

Jaune couldn't help but smile at their cheering. He also wondered where on Remnant Ren got that flag, but that was a question for later.

Professor Port used his axe to break the lock on the cage and released the Boarbatusk that he was to fight. The Grimm charged him immediately. Jaune side-stepped and stabbed at its side but found his blade bouncing off its armor. It whirled around and charged again as he did the same. He aimed for one of its eyes this time but found his blade caught by its tusks. It threw his blade before Jaune hardened his right foot and kicked it upside its head. It got back to its feet quickly before it jumped and begun to spin in the air. Jaune looked over to his sword before he looked back to the Boarbatusk. As it grew close he stayed in place with his hands down at his sides.

"Don't just stand there, you dunce!" Weiss yelled.

He took a deep breath before it barreled into him. He outstretched both his hands and grabbed hold of its tusks. He pushed it back, down into the floor, as it continued to spin. He then lifted his left foot, hardened it, and stomped it down upon its head before he ripped off its tusks. He then plunged them both into its stomach as it laid on the tiled floor. It then faded into dust as he rose back to his feet and walked over to recover his sword.

Port began to clap as Jaune put his blade back into his sheath. "Well done, my boy! Very well done! You have the blood of a true Huntsman in you!" he told him. "Now, unfortunately, that is all the time we have for today's lesson. Be sure to cover the assigned reading. AND! Be. Vigilant. Class dismissed."

Weiss was the first to get up from her seat and leave the room, an angered expression adorning her face as she did so. Ruby chased after her partner as Jaune too began to leave the room and he, unfortunately, overheard what they said to one another. Once they were finished conversing Ruby hung her head as Weiss walked away from her. A frown adorned his face as he walked up to her and placed a hand upon her shoulder.

She turned to him and he found her frowning. "Don't let her get to you, Ruby," he said.

"I don't understand. We agreed to act together, to work as a team. I don't get why she's acting like this." she told him as she looked down at the floor.

Jaune gently turned her around so as to look him in the eye. "Ruby, I can't speak for Weiss, only she can. Try not to take it too personally, I doubt she truly means what she says."

"You don't know that..." she told him.

"True. But, would you like to know something I do know." she looked up to him. "I know that you, Ruby Rose, were chosen for a reason to be the leader of your team. Ozpin saw something in you when he allowed you entrance to Beacon, and so do I. So, please, do not doubt yourself."

She smiled up at him. "Thank you, Jaune. But, how do I become a better leader? I don't know what to do."

"A good question, miss Rose. Though, I fear none other than yourself can answer." Ozpin said as he approached the two of them.

"Headmaster?" Ruby questioned as Jaune turned to face the older man.

"Being a team leader isn't just a title you carry into battle. It is a badge you wear constantly. If you are not performing at your absolute best, then what reason do you give the others on your team to follow you?" he asked her. "Both of you have been tasked with a daunting responsibility. I advise you both take some time to think on how you will uphold it." he walked past them then and continued on his way.

The two leaders watched him walk away till he vanished from their sight. The two stood in silence for a moment till the sound of heels walking on tile caught their attention. They turned to find Weiss walking back inside the school, nowhere near as angry as she had been earlier. She looked to the two of them and began to say something but her voice caught in her throat before she uttered a word. She then turned from them and walked away.

Rubys shoulders fell a bit as she watched her partner walk away again. A hand placed itself on her shoulder once more, causing her to turn to see Jaune smiling down at her. "She'll come around, Ruby. Just give it time."

She smiled at him again before she quickly embraced him in a tight hug. Jaune was surprised for a moment before he returned it in kind. The two stayed that way for a short while.

**SNAP!**

The sound of a camera going off broke them out of their little moment and they both looked over to see who had done it. "Awww, this is adorable!" Yang said as she held up her scroll. Ruby stared wide-eyed as her face became the same color as her cloak. She detached from him and pulled her hood over her face so as to hide as Yang continued to laugh. "I wonder, should I send this everyone back home?"

Ruby disappeared in a shower of petals as she ran over to Yang, trying to get the scroll away from her. "Yang NOOO!" Ruby pleaded as she reached for the scroll.

Yang laughed as Ruby desperately attempted to take her scroll from her. Blake rolled her eyes behind her book but couldn't help but smirk at the scene before her. Jaune couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head. the scene reminded him of how his own sisters use to argue and fight so many years ago. After a few moments of struggling against one another Yang swore not to send the picture but said she would not get rid of the picture. Ruby pouted and looked away from her sister as she continued to laugh.

"I'm going back to the dorm," Ruby told them before disappearing.

Yang put her scroll away before turning her attention to Jaune. "Well, lady-killer looks like you've made quite the impression on my little sis. Don't get any ideas though, I've got my eye on you."

"I'll remember that," he told her with a smirk.

"In all seriousness though, thank you for talking to her. She needs friends like you." Yang said with a smile.

"Happy to help, Yang," he told her as he smiled as well. "Well, I better get back to my team. I'll see you two later."

Both of them nodded as he walked past them and out of their sight. Victor then manifested beside him as he walked out into the courtyard. 'Seems like our time here will be an interesting one, to say the least.'

Yes, indeed it would be.


	5. Strengthening Our Bonds

_**Chapter 5 - Strengthening Our Bonds**_

* * *

**Beta Reader: **_**WhiteNightBlade**_

* * *

It had been a week now since initiation and Jaune currently found himself once more trying to keep up with Professor Oobleck's lesson. He was once again failing, as was everyone else. He looked around to see his friends, and everyone else for that matter, struggling with keeping up with what their professor was saying.

Nora was currently taking a nap, Ren was trying to wake her up, Pyrrha tried to write down what she could, Ruby looked defeated as she stared down at her notes, Yang stared off into the distance, Blake was reading her book, and Weiss tried to pay attention. Jaune himself had given up trying to take notes and simply began to record audio on his scroll to listen to it later. He pretended to take notes after he had started recording to at least let it look like he was paying attention. In truth, he just kept scribbling something in his notebook.

An elbow jabbed him in the ribs as he continued to do so, making him look over to see Pyrrha as she tried to hide a smile. Jaune merely looked to Oobleck as he continued to talk a mile a minute before looking back to her. She could only shake her head and clench her jaw shut to stop herself from laughing.

"Now, I do believe our time is close to its end children. For the weekend I have a special assignment for you all. I wish for you all to write me an essay as to why you wish to become a Hunter, and what you believe it means to be one. I expect it on my desk Monday when our lesson resumes. You are all dismissed." Oobleck said before the bell to dismiss them rang, and he disappeared from the room.

Jaune stopped the recording on his scroll before he rose from his seat and stuffed his supplies into his bag. Nora was finally roused from her sleep, muttering something about sloths as she did so. "Huh? Wha? Where am I? Is it breakfast time?" she asked as Ren woke her.

"No, Nora. It's lunchtime," he told her as he gathered his things.

"Aww! I wanted pancakes!" she pouted as she fell against the desk.

"Get up, and I'll make you some later," Ren told her as he walked past her.

"You're the best Renny!" Nora told him as she got up and began to follow him.

Ren simply nodded his head in agreement.

Jaune couldn't help but laugh at the scene before him. The same could be said for Pyrrha as she tried to hide her smile behind her hand. The team made their way to the cafeteria and sat opposite team RWBY as they began to eat their food.

"So, what did I miss in the lesson?" Nora asked as she took a bite of her steak.

"What? Did you sleep through the lecture?" Weiss asked.

"Yes." all of team JNPR answered.

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose as Jaune answered. "We have to write a paper on why we want to become hunters."

"Oh, that's easy! To hunt monsters!" Nora said as she slammed the palms of her hands into the table.

"And what we believe it means to be a hunter." Ren finished.

"That's a piece of cake!" Nora said as she leaned close to Ren. "Ren, can you help me write it?"

"Only if you promise to pay attention in class from now on," Ren told her.

"I promise!" Nora told him as she saluted.

A silence fell upon them as they all focused on eating their food. Soon enough, the two teams found themselves finished eating and merely waiting to go to their next class.

"So, any plans for this weekend guys?" Yang asked.

"Not really," Jaune said. "Other than the paper that is."

"Oooh! I have an idea!" Ruby said as she rose from her seat. "Let's throw a party!"

"A party? Ruby, I'm not sure that a good idea with the assignment we have this weekend." Pyrrha told her.

"That's the best part though! We can discuss the paper while we are throwing the party!" she told them.

"Huh, I like the way you think Ruby. Let's do it." Jaune said in agreement.

"Wait really?" Blake asked as she looked up from her book.

"Yes! Party!" Ruby and Nora cheered.

Everyone agreed to it, and as the bell rang they all went off to Goodwitch's combat class, each one having different ideas for the party.

* * *

'So, think you've got everything?' Victor questioned as he looked around the dorm. 'I'd figure you need more snacks.'

The snack bar they had prepared consisted of nachos, pizza, several different fruits, and some chips with dip. They also had several liters of soda at the end of the table. 'I think we have enough, Victor.' he told him as he picked up a slice of apple and ate it. It had been a challenge getting the table in here without being noticed. They had managed to do it, however, and now all they waited for were their other guests to arrive. And they should be here any minute...

**KNOCK!KNOCK!**

...now.

Ren went over and let team RWBY into their dorm. They brought some food of their own, mostly cookies, and some chips, and added them to the snack bar. Jaune stayed on his bed as everyone took places around the room. Pyrrha sat opposite him on her bed, Ren and Nora sat between their beds together. Ruby sat at the foot of Jaune's bed on the floor, Weiss sat at the foot of Pyrrha's bed, and Blake and Yang sat between the two of them.

"Well, we're all here now. What do you talk about first, Ruby?" Jaune asked as he turned to her.

"Me?! Why are you asking me?!" she questioned.

"Because this was your idea," he told her with a deadpanned expression.

"Oh yeah! Sorry!" she said as she scratched the back of her head. "Well, I suppose we should first talk about why we all want to be hunters. Then after that, we can talk about what we all think what it means to be hunters."

"Sounds good to me. You wanna go first Ruby?" he asked.

"Sure!" she said as everyone gave her their undivided attention. "When I was younger Yang would always read me fairy tales, and those stories are why I am here, I wanna be just like the heroes in those books. To fight for what is right and to protect people who can't protect themselves."

'A good reason, if a bit childish.' Victor said as he manifested on the other side of the room.

"I feel that the meaning of being a hunter is to do what is right, to serve justice and to protect the world from evil." she continued. Jaune smiled down at her as she smiled at the group. It was refreshing hearing her reasoning for why she wanted to pursue this life. It was good to know that despite all the evil that existed in the world, there were those like Ruby, those who shined bright in the darkness. Jaune reached over to the table, grabbed one of the chocolate chip cookies and handed it to her. It disappeared in a millisecond as everyone turned to look at Yang.

"To be honest with you guys, I want to be a huntress cause I'm a thrill seeker. I wanna travel around the world and get wrapped up in as many crazy adventures as I can. And if I can help people along the way, then it's a win-win." she told them.

"Can't say I'm surprised," Weiss said.

"I've heard worse reasons," Blake told her.

Yang stuck her tongue out at her two teammates in response. "Can't say my idea for what it means to be a hunter is any different than my little sis," she said as she ruffled Ruby's hair as she ate another cookie. "I think we can all agree that's what the meaning of being a Hunter is."

Everyone nodded in agreement as they looked over to Blake. "There's too much wrong in this world just to stand by and do nothing. Inequality? Corruption? Someone has to stop it." Blake told them as he bows shifted slightly.

Jaune noticed it and looked at it for a moment. 'Did her bow just move?' he asked.

'I think it did.' Victor said as he stroked his chin. 'If that means what I think it does, then what she just said about equality makes a lot more sense.'

'Indeed it does.' he responded.

"That's an admirable goal, Blake," Pyrrha told her.

"Indeed. Though, such a feat will be difficult for you to do alone. But, that's why you have a team." Jaune said as he gestured to the rest of team RWBY who all nodded in agreement.

"We'll help you too, Blake!" Nora told her.

"Indeed. It is a goal worth pursuing." Ren said.

Jaune and Pyrrha also nodded their heads in agreement. Blake fell silent for a short while, her eyes wide as she looked at everyone. A smile then graced her face. "Thank you, all of you. I...was not expecting that."

"No sweat, Blakey!" Yang said as she slung her arm over her partner's shoulder.

Everyone then turned to Weiss as she cleared her throat. "Well, I have a legacy and a duty to uphold the honor of my family. Once I realized I was capable of fighting there wasn't any question what my future would be. I refuse to allow the reputation my family has now to be what we are remembered for."

'She's determined, no question about that. I like her.' Victor said as he came and sat back to back with Jaune.

'As do I.' he told him. "You have set quite the task for yourself. I wish you luck with that."

"Thank you," she said with a smile.

Everyone then turned to look at Pyrrha as she began to speak. "Well, ever since I was a child I always felt that it was destiny to be a huntress, like my mother: to protect the world. Can't really say there's any other reason for me to be here," she told them as she scratched the back of her head.

"I think a lot of people would say they became Hunters for the same reason, Pyrrha," Ren told her.

"Indeed. But that by no means it's a bad thing." Weiss said in agreement.

Everyone then turned to Ren, who looked to Nora for a moment before she nodded her head. "I think I speak both Nora and me when I say that we didn't have any other choice for us in terms of what we would do with our lives. Our...our home was destroyed by Grimm when we were young. I'd rather not go into that any more than I already have. But since then we've been together ever since," he told them as he and Nora looked to one another.

"Taking care of one another." Nora finished as they smiled at one another before looking back to everyone.

"That's... I'm so sorry," Ruby told them as she clutched her hands to her chest. Yang placed a hand upon her sister's shoulder as Blake looked down to the floor, Weiss frowned at their tale. It was not uncommon, many had suffered similar fates, but it was never easy to hear about them. Pyrrha placed a hand upon Nora's shoulder as Jaune did the same for Ren. The two of them smiled up at their teammates before everyone looked to Jaune.

He took a deep breath as Victor placed a comforting hand upon his shoulder. While he could not actually feel it, the act still had the desired effect as Jaune looked to everyone. "Ever since I was a kid I've always wanted to be a huntsman. Mostly because of my family."

"Were your parent's hunters?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, they were. But that's not why," Jaune told her as a frown formed on his face.

"Then why?" she asked without thinking.

"Ruby..." Yang began to say as she began to realize what he meant.

"Yang, it's ok. She had no way of knowing. Since we're sharing, I might as well tell you guys." he told her before he continued. "Seven years ago my home was attacked by a horde of Grimm. I don't remember much of anything that occurred that day other than running away like a coward. Everything else I remember comes back to me almost every night, in my nightmares." everyone was stunned silent as they continued to listen.

"Jaune, you were a kid. Anyone else would have done the same in your position." Yang told him, breaking the silence.

"You're not the first person to tell me that, and even though it doesn't make me feel any better, I appreciate you trying. It didn't do any good though as the Grimm chased me down and attacked me. If it weren't for a nearby Huntsmen saving me, I wouldn't be here now. After I had recovered, I went back home to see if I could find any sign of my mother or my sisters. I found nothing. I want to be a Huntsmen to ensure that no other family will ever be ripped apart as mine was. To ensure no little boy or girl would ever be all alone in this world again."

The room had fallen quiet, unsettlingly quiet. Jaune's eyes scanned the room and found most everyone with shocked expressions on their faces, Ren and Nora looked up at him sympathetically, knowing what it was to feel as he did. Pyrrha held her hands over her mouth in shock, and she appeared to be on the brink of tears. His attention was brought down to his legs as he heard someone sniffling. He looked over to see Ruby with tears falling from her eyes as she looked up at him.

He moved from his bed to place his hands upon her shoulders as she continued to weep. "I...I didn't..." she choked out between sobs.

"Ruby," she looked up at him. "You couldn't have known. So, please, don't cry over something you had didn't know. I'm not worth your tears." he then gently wiped away her tears before she brought up her hood to do it herself.

"Jaune?" Pyrrha began, earning his attention. "There's something I wish to ask. If that's ok." he nodded his head. "You didn't mention your father at all, is he still alive? And are you sure your family didn't escape? They could still be out there."

"I don't know. I never knew my father. He was never around. I don't know if he left us or if he died, but he wasn't there that day. And I have hope that maybe they are, but I never found anything. Neither did any of the friends that I've made over the years." Jaune rose to his feet then as he looked around to everyone else. "Now, enough about me and my sad life. We came here to have a party, so let's stop feeling sad and have a good time while we can. You never know if Goodwitch will find out about this and crash it."

Everyone laughed at that, and it seemed to raise their spirits a little. They all proceeded to get themselves something to eat as Yang and Ruby began to play one another on their scrolls. It was fun to watch the siblings bicker and talk back and forth as they played; it reminded him of his own family to an extent.

'Quite the selection of friends you have now, Jaune.' Victor said as he smiled, looking to the group as they cheered Ruby and Yang on.

'Indeed I do.' he responded as he watched Yang raise her arms in Victory and Nora begin to play against her.

* * *

**Omake: Truth or Dare**

* * *

They all sat in a circle in the center of team JNPRs room. It was close to midnight now and to end the night with a bang, or, unfortunately, as Yang put it 'with a Yang' they all agreed to play truth or dare. Jaune laid back against the foot of his bed as he rested his arm over his raised knee. Everyone turned their attention to Yang as she spoke.

"Okay, so this game gonna be a bit different than truth or dare normally would be. Gotta make things a bit more interesting. Firstly, you cannot do choose to do truth or dare more than twice in a row, you have to do a dare, it's not fun otherwise. Second, you cannot pick the person who picked you. We'll be here all night otherwise. Everyone in agreement?" they all nod their heads. "Then let's get started, I'll go first! Blake, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"How naughty is that book you keep hidden under your pillow?"

Blakes' cheeks flushed red and her eyes widened as everyone turned to her. She looked to the ceiling as she wished to be struck down at that moment. "It is...explicit."

Yang clutched her sides as her laughter filled the room, making Blake glare at her as she continued to do so. "Ok, my turn now." she scanned the group for someone to pick. "Ren, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"What's it like living with Nora?"

"There's never a dull moment," Ren said as Jaune and Pyrrha nodded in agreement. "Nora, truth or dare?"

"Dare! Hit me with your best shot Ren!" she challenged.

"I dare you to stop eating pancakes for the next two days."

The color drained from Nora's face as she clutched her chest and fell back. "You have killed me, Ren. How could you do such a thing?"

"You chose dare," he told her as he ate an orange slice.

Nora let out a deep sigh as she got back up and pouted. Everyone laughed at her reaction as she locked her gaze onto Jaune. "Fearless leader, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"What's something that's always embarrassed you?"

"...My sisters use to braid my hair," he said as he averted his gaze from her and everyone began to laugh. He simply shook his head in response. "Pyrrha, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"Hmm. Oh, I know. You ever get love letters from fans?"

Pyrrha's face turned red as she took a deep breath. "I stopped opening them after the thirtieth time I received one." Jaune couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Moving on! Ruby, truth or Dare?"

"Dare!"

"I dare you to stop eating cookies for an entire week," she told her.

'Damn.' Victor said as he watched the young reaper put on her puppy dog eyes.

"Pyrrha, please, I beg." she clung onto her leg as she tried to convince her, but her efforts proved fruitless as Pyrrha shook her head. Defeated Ruby got back up and looked to her partner. "Weiss, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

Ruby tapped her chin before snapping her fingers as she had thought of her question. "Is there any chance we could get you to sing for us?"

"Not any time soon no," she answered quickly, Her gaze then locked onto Yang. "Yang, truth or dare?"

"Dare. Bring it on Ice Queen!" Yang challenged.

Weiss' eye twitched as she looked to her teammate. A smirk then formed on her face as she decided on what she would have her do. "I dare you to go without washing your hair for the rest of the week."

Yangs eyes turned red as she stared at her teammate. "I will not forget this betrayal." Her gaze then looked over to Jaune. "Ok after this last one I say we all head to bed. Jaune, truth or dare?"

'Don't do it.' Victor counseled.

"Dare."

Victor facepalmed.

"I dare you to let me and Ruby braid your hair."

Jaune looked down at the floor, ignoring Victors comment of, 'I warned you.'

"I feel like I was set up."

"Undoubtedly!" Yang said as she laughed.

"No flowers. Please?"

"No, all of the flowers!" Ruby told him with a smile.

Jaune let out a groan as he banged his head against the foot of his bed, making everyone laugh as a result.

* * *

**AN: Well that happened, hahaha. **

**I'll be honest, I feel this chapter could have been better, especially the Omake. I just wanted to have fun with it so let me know if you enjoyed it. There won't be many of these Omakes, I only have two others planned and they won't come up for a short while. And I will say to me personally these are canon, but they are more for fun so that's why they are Omakes and not in the actual chapter.**

**Anyway, please, let me know what you thought in a review and I hope to see you all next time I update this story.**

**Later.**


	6. Jaunedice

_**Chapter 6 - Jaunedice**_

* * *

**AN: Short message here real fast. I've been asked twice now if only the five girls tagged above will be in Jaunes harem. I don't mind being asked this, but being I've been asked this same question twice now I just wanna answer it here and now. **

**The answer is yes, only those five. No more. Just wanted to clear that up real fast. Also, the romance will not be immediate, this story is going to be a somewhat long one and I'm gonna make sure each romance makes sense. To me at least anyway. **

**Anywho, I've taken enough time talking about this so onto the chapter!**

* * *

**Beta Reader: **_**WhiteNightBlade**_

* * *

Jaune currently found himself in Goodwitch's combat class, waiting to see who would be first to fight today. It had been a few days since their party and the two teams had grown much closer. Knowing one another's reasons for being here made them all respect one another more then they did before. Plus, they just had fun when they were all together. The memory of that night brought a smile to his face as he remembered all they had done. From watching Yang and Ruby playing games, to Yang and Nora arm-wrestling, resulting in a table splitting in half, it was just an all around fun time. He hadn't had so much fun since he had been with his brothers nearly two years ago. He just wished this time he wouldn't be forced to separate from his new friends any time soon.

"The first match for today will be Jaune Arc vs. Cardin Winchester!" professor Goodwitch said, catching his attention. His opponent rose from his seat and grinned as he looked over to him. Jaunes brow arched as he watched him walk away and descend into the locker-room. He quickly followed suit and readied to fight. The two met in the center of the arena with their weapons ready. "Okay you two, you know the rules. When either of your aura's fall into the red zone then the match is over. Any further action taken after I have stopped the bout will not be tolerated. Am I understood?" they both nodded. "Then ready yourself, the match will begin in ten seconds."

Jaune and Cardin walked back from one another, never breaking eye contact from one another. Jaune popped his neck and rolled his shoulders before taking a fighting stance. Cardin began to smirk at him, as though he had already won the fight. The timer started to count down as everyone waited with bated breath to see how the fight would go.

"Go for his legs, Jauney!" Nora yelled from the stands.

"You can do it, Jaune!" Ruby cheered.

"Represent team JNPR!" Ren said as he once more waved a small flag with team JNPR's name on it.

'Seriously, where does he keep getting those?' Jaune asked himself as the buzzer rang, signaling the fight to start.

The two huntsmen in training charged one another quickly and met back in the arena's center. Jaune ducked and rolled under Cardin's initial attack and got behind him before kicking him in the back of his knee, forcing him to kneel. As he knelt, Cardin spun around to strike at Jaune, but Jaune jumped over the attack and landed on the mace shaft, making it crash into the arena floor. Before he could retaliate with an attack of his own Jaune was thrown back as Cardin pressed a button on his maces handle, causing an explosion to erupt from the weapons head.

He crashed into the nearby wall but quickly leaped from it and brought his blade down upon Cardin who blocked the attack with the shaft of his mace. Jaune increases his density, making him heavier, and forces Cardin down to his knees. Jaune found himself falling as he continued to push down as Cardin had let go of his weapon. Cardin's fist crashed into the side of Jaunes face, but Cardin quickly brought his fist back as Jaunes body was still hardened. Jaune disabled his semblance and swung at him, but Cardin managed to dodge by a hair before ducking and getting his weapon back.

'He has skills, I'll give him that. He focuses far too much on offense though.' Victor said as he sat to the side and watched the two fight. Jaune looked over to the specter for a short moment before he turned his attention back to Cardin as he charged him. 'Never take your eyes off your opponent, I taught you that.'

'Yeah well, you're not exactly helping with that!' Jaune scolded as he phased through a swing and got behind Cardin again. He thought of kicking his back but realized Cardin's armor would absorb most of the blow. Instead, he swept Cardin's legs out from under him, making him fall face first into the floor. He then got back up and pointed his blade at Cardin's face as he looked up to him.

"Enough! Jaune Arc is the winner!" Glynda yelled as the buzzer sounded again. Jaune withdrew his blade and stepped back as Cardin rose to his feet. "Well done, Mr. Arc. You used your superior mobility and attacked your opponent where he had no real defense. An excellent strategy." she then turned to Cardin. "Mr. Winchester, you showed that you are far stronger than your opponent, but that alone will not win you a fight. As both a team leader and as a Huntsmen-in-training, you need to use your head more in battle. You both may now return to your seats."

Cardin muttered something under his breath as he left the arena, his rage-filled eyes glaring at Jaune for a brief moment. Choosing not to have a confrontation start he decided to ignore it and went his own way, back to his team. Upon sitting down, he felt a pair of hands grab hold of his shoulders and begin to shake him.

"That was amazing, Jauney!" Nora told him as she shook him forward then back

"Thank! You! Nora!" he told her between being shaken.

Ren placed his hand upon Nora's shoulder. "Nora, please stop shaking him. We still need him."

"Ahhh, okaaay," she whined as she finally stopped shaking him.

"Thank you, Ren," Jaune told him.

"You're welcome," Ren responded.

"Now, let the next match get underway! Lie Ren and Blake Belladonna, please step forward!" Glynda called to the two before they began to make their way down into the arena. As Jaune watched his two friends prepare to fight he felt someone looking at him. Jaune looked up and met Cardin's gaze once more. He glared at him; no doubt angered at how Jaune had beaten him. Jaune glared back as he straightened himself in his seat. The two glared at one another as the battle below began and it ended once Cardin averted his gaze.

Content to have won the staredown Jaune relaxed as he looked down and watched the match that was currently under-way.

* * *

The rest of combat class passed by fairly quickly after Blake had won her match with Ren when his aura had drifted into the red zone. It seemed like only a minute had passed between him beating Cardin and where he was now, eating with his friends.

"So, there we were! It was the middle of the night." Nora told them

"It was day."

"We were surrounded by Ursai!" Nora exclaimed.

"They were Beowolves."

"Dozens of them!" she stood from her seat.

"There was only two of them."

Nora looked down at him with a frown. "Ren! Stop ruining my story!"

"Stop over exaggerating and I will," he told her as he ate some of his mash-potatoes.

"But that's no fun!" she whined. "Jaune! Tell Ren to stop being such a meanie!"

"Ren?"

"Yes?"

"Continue as you are," he ordered.

"Yes, sir."

Nora crossed her arms and sat back down as she began to pout. "Traitors; the both of you."

Everyone else couldn't help but giggle at the exchange. Their attention caught the sounds of someone in pain ringing through the Cafeteria. They turned to see a faunus girl, one they recognized from class, getting her ears pulled by Cardin Winchester. He and the rest of his team were laughing as he continued to pull, even as she begged him to stop. Jaune grasped the edge of the table with one hand as he clenched the other so tight he felt his nails dig into his palm.

"See! I told you they were real!" Cardin told his team with a laugh.

"What a freak!" Russel said as he watched it happen.

"Despicable, I can't stand people like him." Pyrrha spat as she watched them.

"Me too," Yang said as she clenched her fists in anger.

"How someone like that is allowed here is beyond me," Blake said as she stared down at her food.

Jaune had dropped fork and had his eyes glued to the scene going on behind him. He felt his blood boil and his left-hand clench closed. He looked briefly to the others in the room. No one, not even the teachers seemed interested in doing anything to end this. He picked up one of the peas he had on his tray and balanced it on his right index finger. One interesting thing about his semblance that he found helpful at times such as these, while also being able to increase his density he can do the same to objects he is in physical contact with.

Such as this pea for instance.

He let his aura flow into the small vegetable, making it as hard as a pellet. He then flicked it forward, making it zoom by Cardin's face. The orange haired teen let go of the faunus girls ear, allowing her to move away from him and his team. Cardin spun to his left, turning around in his seat, and looked to the small hole that now decorated the far wall. He then turned back to see Jaune looking at him with his hand outstretched. Cardin quickly put two and two together and marched over to Jaune.

"Arc! What the hell was that?" he yelled as he marched over.

"A warning." Jaune simply stated as he grabbed his milk and took a drink from the carton.

"A warning?! I'll show you a warning you little-!" Cardin swung at Jaune but found his fist caught. Jaune rose as he kept a hold of Cardin's fist and looked to Cardin's other hand as it came towards him. It slammed into his chin but soon retracted as Cardin let out a yell of pain before grabbing his hand. Jaune returned the density of his face to normal as he walked forward but quickly found himself levitating in mid-air. He looked over to see Ms. Goodwitch holding her riding crop towards him.

The Headmistress rubbed the side of her head before she looked between the two. "And here I had hoped to avoid situations such as these." she placed Jaune far away from Cardin before continuing. "Both of you will accompany me, now. The Headmaster will decide what is to do with you."

Jaune shrugged his shoulders as he and Cardin followed after the Headmistress. He briefly looked back to his friends, seeing their worried expressions, before he turned and followed her out of the cafeteria. Everyone watched as the three left the room before returning to eating their food.

"Awwww! I was hoping Jauney would break his legs!" Nora said disappointedly.

"There's always tomorrow, Nora," Ren told her.

"Think he'll be alright?" Ruby asked as she looked back to the door Jaune left through.

"Who? Jaune? Don't worry sis; he'll be fine!" Yang told her sister. "The worst they could do to him is maybe give him detention."

"Why would they do that though? He stopped Cardin from hurting that girl." Ruby said.

"And in doing so he caused an altercation between himself and Winchester," Weiss told her.

"That's all they will care about in the end." Blake continued as she looked to her leader.

"That's not fair though!" Ruby protested.

"That's life, Ruby," Yang told her sister as she placed a hand upon her shoulder.

Ruby rested her arms on the table and laid her forehead on them as an uneasy silence took over the tables. She knew not how much time had passed with her being as she was, but she heard the bell ring again, and everyone got up to leave.

* * *

Ozpin sat behind his desk as he watched the footage from the cafeteria. A deep sigh escaped him as he rewatched the events that had taken place not even half an hour ago. He placed his favorite mug to the side before interlocking his hands and looking to his two students. Glynda stood between the two with her Riding Crop at the ready. Cardin rubbed at his right hand, and Jaune waited for Ozpin to say something. A heavy sigh escaped the headmaster as he leaned forward and rested his forehead against his hands. "I had hoped to avoid having a meeting such as this so early on in the school year. But, situations such as these are inevitable." Ozpin then pressed play on the recording. "Mr. Winchester, mind explaining why you were harassing Ms. Scarlatina?"

Cardin looked away from the headmaster as he muttered something.

Glynda's riding crop smacked against the side of the chair Cardin sat in. "If you have something to say, then speak loud enough for us to hear."

Cardin looked back to Ozpin. "Do I need a reason?" Ozpins brow arched as Glynda released a sigh. "She's a faunus, an animal. They shouldn't be here."

"And who taught you that? Whoever it was they must have been pretty bitter. That or they were just akin to trash." Jaune spoke.

Cardin turned and glared at him as he rose from his seat. "You shut your mouth!"

Jaune looked over to him, unfazed. "Am I suppose to be scared?"

Cardin clenched his hand closed and seemed as though he was about to strike him again. However, Ozpin placed his cane in front of the teen, earning both of their attention. "That is enough! Mr. Winchester, please sit back down." Cardin hesitantly sat back down as Ozpin retracted his cane. "And Mr. Arc, refrain from antagonizing your classmate any further."

"I was simply stating my opinion, Headmaster. Forgive me." Jaune said.

"Now, back to the topic at hand. Mr. Winchester, I suggest you refrain from further harassment of your faunus classmates. Another incident such as these will result in more drastic measures being taken against you." he told him. "And you, Mr. Arc. While I appreciate you standing up for your fellow student, I cannot allow these acts to go unpunished. So, as of tomorrow, you will both be spending each day of this semester after class with Professor Oobleck, helping him with whatever he sees fit for you to do."

Ozpin watched as some of the colors drained from Cardin's face and Jaune release a sigh. "Glynda, please, escort Mr. Winchester to the medical wing to get his hand examined. I wish to speak with Mr. Arc for a moment in private." The headmistress nodded her head as she ushered for Cardin to follow her before they both headed to the elevator. After they departed Jaune and Ozpin got up from his desk and walked over to his coffee machine. "Would you like a cup, Mr. Arc?"

"No, sir. And please, call me Jaune. Mr. Arc makes me sound old." Jaune said, making both of them chuckle.

"Very well then," Ozpin said as he refilled his mug before walking back to his desk and sit back down. "So, tell me, how has your time here been?"

"It's definitely been a unique experience, that's for sure. Classes are...unusual, to say the least." Jaune said.

"You'd be surprised how many times I've heard that from my students over the years," Ozpin said with a short chuckle.

"I'm not so sure I would be. Especially after meeting professor Oobleck." Jaune responded as the two shared a laugh. Jaunes face then took on a more serious expression as he looked into the Headmasters eyes. "So, tell me, what's the real reason you wished to speak with me? I doubt it was solely because you wanted to know how my time here has been."

Ozpin too now wore an earnest expression before he took another drink from his mug, then he sets it to the side. "Very well then. Why are you here?"

"Is there a problem with me being here?" Jaune asked as he quirked his head to the side.

"Not at all. But, imagine my surprise, when I found one of the Four Horsemen applied here at my academy. I must say, I thought you four chose not to attend the academies." Ozpin told him as he interlocked his fingers once more and rested his chin upon them.

"We're advised to avoid them, but we're not forbidden from attending," Jaune told him as he leaned back in the chair.

"I see. Should I expect the other three to arrive soon then?" Ozpin asked as he leaned forward.

"Probably not, no. I haven't seen War or Death in over a year, so I can't say where they are. Famine though is in Vale, but I doubt he will come here." Jaune said before he too leaned forward. "Why? Do you want us all here for some reason?"

"Not at this point in time, no. While the situation is troublesome until those in play are revealed, I will not make a move." Ozpin told him.

"You speak as though this is some sort of game," Jaune stated.

"In a way it is, but I assure you, I do not consider it so. Our enemy, however, she very much feels that way." Ozpin said before drinking from his mug once again. "But, I believe you have indulged me for long enough. You may return to your classes now, Jaune." Jaune nodded as he rose and headed towards the elevator. "Oh, and Jaune," Jaune turned back to face him as he called the elevator. "do refrain from getting yourself into too much trouble from now on. Gods know you Horsemen find it easily enough anyway."

"I make no promises I can't keep, Headmaster," Jaune said before entering the elevator.

After a few minutes, Ozpin spun his chair around and stood up from it before walking over to the large window behind his desk. He looked out over the horizon, to both the city of Vale and his students that resided in the Courtyard. A smile made its way onto his face as he watched how peaceful it was. It almost made him forget how long he had fought and made him hope that those below would never learn the truth of the war that resided in the shadows.

* * *

**AN: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I got stuck a bit with the dialogue in this last part so I hope it's good. Anyway, please let me know what you thought and I will see you guys next time.**

**Later!**


	7. Forever Fall

**_Chapter 7 - Forever Fall_**

* * *

**Beta Reader - _WhiteNightBlade_**

* * *

A tired sigh escaped Jaune as he stacked another set of test papers down on the desk where he sat. He and Cardin had been helping Professor, or rather Doctor as he preferred to be called, as Oobleck both grade the previous test they had done and helped prepare the next test the classes would be taking. He would much rather be back in the Emerald Forest than doing this, at least in the forest he could enjoy the somewhat peaceful feeling the woodlands had. Here, he had to endure the nonstop lecture from the seasoned Huntsman, and he could not rely on his fellow huntsman-in-training to help him through it.

"Now, as you both know this is your final day with me! Once you are both finished with preparing those tests for me, you are free to return to your dorms!" Oobleck told them. "I know you did not volunteer for this, but I wish to thank you regardless for your aid. I just hope our time together has taught you both something." Oobleck then sped away as he began to drink from his thermos.

Another hour passed before Jaune and Cardin finished in their task. Oobleck thanked them once more before leaving the room. The two teenagers said nothing to one another as they exited together and prepared to go their separate ways. "Cardin," he called out, earning the larger teens attention. "Look, I know we haven't had the best introduction to one another. I'd rather not have us be enemies. I'm willing to bury the hatchet if you are." Jaune extended his hand.

Cardin looked at him and then to his hand. He hadn't said a word before walking past him, leaving Jaune in the hall. "It was worth a try," he told himself before he too proceeded down the hall.

Victor manifested and began to walk beside him as they made their way out of the Academy's main building. _'At least you tried. Many in your position wouldn't have given him the light of day.'_

'I know, but I'd prefer not to have any enemies while I'm here. Gods know I have enough to worry about anyway,' he said to the spirit.

_'True enough. Though, what will you do if Winchester tries anything?'_ Victor asked.

'We'll figure that out when and if it happens.' he responded as he made his way to the statue as he continued his way towards the Dorms.

"Hey, blondie! Wait up a sec!" a feminine voice called out, making him stop to look and see who was yelling. When he turned, he found four of his fellow students approaching him. One he recognized instantly as the faunus girl Cardin had been bullying the previous week. She was the only one to still be in her Beacon uniform as the others seemed to be dressed in their combat apparel.

The second person he laid eyes was a tall and athletic-looking young man with shaved-short black hair and well-tanned skin. He wore a green long short-sleeved robe over a black muscle shirt, brown pants and black-and-green boots. A large piece of armor, similar to a pauldron, covered most of his left arm.

The third was a teen only an inch or so taller than himself. His skin was dark, darker then the taller teen's, his hair was akin to copper in color, and his eyes were pure white. He wore a sleeveless, muted orange zipper vest, a pair of black jeans, and brown, laced shoes. His arms were nearly covered in scars, showing that he was no stranger to battle.

The final member of the group, the one he assumed to be the leader, was a girl with fair skin, short dark-brown hair and dark-brown eyes. She wore a cocoa-colored shirt with a dark brown waist cincher, dark brown trousers with ribbons on the left side and a brown belt with several cartridges on the face of the belt. The four of them continued to walk towards him till they all stood beside him in front of the statue. "You're Jaune Arc, right? The leader of Team JNPR?"

"Yeah, that's me. You guys need something?" he asked as he put his hands into his pants pocket.

"Oh, nothing major. We just wanted to thank you for standing up to that little jackass who was messing poor little Velvet here. I'm Coco, by the way, Coco Adel." the girl said as she pulled the rabbit-eared faunus into a headlock and extended her other hand for him to shake.

"Coco! Stooop!" the faunus girl whined as everyone else began to laugh as Jaune and Coco shook hands.

"I didn't do anything, really," he shrugged as he pulled his hand back.

"Oh, so I guess Winchester just happened to try and hit you for no reason then, hmm?" Coco asked as she pulled her sunglasses down a bit. Jaunes second shrug was her answer. "Regardless, thanks for looking out for our little bun-bun!"

Velvet squirmed out of Coco's grasp and went to stand behind Yatsuhashi, glaring at Coco as she did so. The large teen chuckled as his partner did so before walking forward, stopping as he stood in front of Jaune. "Thank you for looking out for her. I owe you one." Yatsuhashi then placed his fist into the palm of his other hand as he bowed slightly. Jaune replied with the same gesture.

Fox was the next to approach and merely nodded his head as he extended his hand. Jaune nodded in response, and the two shook hands for a short moment.

The last to approach him was Velvet herself. She bowed her head slightly before saying, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Velvet. But really, there's no need to thank me," he told her. "It was nice meeting you all, but I need to get back to my team. We're supposed to study together for the next test tonight."

"Well don't let us hold you up. We'll all have to meet up sometime, go out to Vale or something."

"That sounds like a fun time. See you guys later." Jaune said as he turned from them, waving at them as he did so. He continued back to the Dormitory and found that his team had already begun their study session. "Well, this is a nice sight to return to." Ren and Pyrrha were going over their notes as Nora was reading from their textbook as she sat at the end of Pyrrha's bed. No, wait, the book was upside-down. Nevermind. "Nora, you can't read a book that way."

"Says you! I will have you know, fearless leader, I am perfectly capable of reading this way!" she told him.

"Is that so?" he questioned with a smirk as he looked over to Ren who just shook his head.

"Yep! Especially when I do this!" Nora said before she turned from him and leaned back, hanging upside down off the bed.

"Nora," he called out.

"Yes? ~" she replied.

"Never change," he told her as he sat down beside Ren and Pyrrha.

"Yes, sir!" she said with a salute.

Everyone else chuckled at their bubbly teammate as Jaune pulled out his scroll and began to take notes from his recordings.

* * *

A yawn escaped Jaune as he walked with the class towards the air-fields. They were going to the Forever Fall forest for a particular field trip. What this trip would entail they knew not yet, but they would soon find out.

"Today we shall be heading into the Forever Fall forest. Our task, while we are there, is to gather the special sap that comes from the trees, professor Peach has requested we do this for her." Goodwtich told them. "Now, all of you, board a bullhead with your team. Once all of you are seated, we shall depart."

Jaune boarded one bullhead with his team following after him. He sat close to the side to avoid vomiting on anyone else's shoes if it happened. Yang gave him enough grief about it, and he didn't need someone on his own team doing the same. Pyrrha took her place beside him as Ren sat across from him and Nora sat beside the Mistrali gunslinger. "So, you guys have any idea why we're going to get this sap?"

"From what little I know of it, the sap can only be harvested from the trees in the forest. On a side note though, the forest is said to be breathtakingly beautiful." Pyrrha said.

"Well, now we can perhaps appreciate it since we won't be flung into it," Jaune commented as he held onto his stomach.

"Oooo, I wonder if the sap would go well on pancakes!" Nora added before letting out a gasp. "We should totally take a jar back, Ren! That way we can test it out!"

"That may be unwise, Nora. We don't know if it's safe to eat." Ren told her.

"Silly! If it wasn't safe than we wouldn't be out here collecting it!" Nora responded.

Ren's eyes widened slightly at the realization before looking over to his childhood friend. "That... is a fair point, Nora."

The flight soon came to an end as they began to descend into the forest. The blood-red leaves began to disperse everywhere as the Bullheads landed and they all got off. Each team went and grabbed a box with jars in them. Team CRDL retrieved their box first, pushing past team RWBY and JNPR as they did so. Jaune watched them walk out of sight before he looked back as Nora got their case.

He walked with his team over to several trees and grabbed one of the many jars from the box. Drawing his blade, he punctured the tree and placed the container below the hole. It didn't take long for it to fill with the sap and Jaune secured the lid back on the jar before rising from where he knelt. He began to walk over to where the box sat as he spied Ren filling up and handed Nora a jar. She then proceeded to drink all the sap out, earning her a glare from her partner. Pyrrha wasn't far away from them and had just finished filling her own jar. The two of them met back at their box and placed their containers back into the box at the same time.

"Well, that wasn't so hard," Pyrrha stated.

"You sure? Think I may have pulled something back there." Jaune said as he bent backward, stretching out his lower back.

Pyrrha giggled at her partner as a smirk made its way onto her face. "Oh no! Whatever will we do now?!" she asked as she continued to laugh.

"You guys will have to go on without me! I...I...ACHOO!" Pyrrha jumped back as Jaune covered his nose.

"You...You feeling alright, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked hesitantly as she approached him.

"No," he told her as he wiped at his nose. "I think I may be allergic to this place. That or it's just messing with my sinuses."

"Well, maybe you should head back to the Bullhead?" she asked as she scratched the back of her head.

"It's not that bad, Pyrrha. I can handle it," he told her as he straightened himself.

'Jaune!' Victor yelled at him, earning his attention. Jaune looked to where Victor was and saw a jar flying towards Pyrrha. He quickly grabbed her by her shoulders and moved her out of the way. The young Arc started to increase his density as the jar hit him in the face. The sap stung in his eyes, causing him to let out a pained yell as he covered his face with his hands.

"JAUNE!" Pyrrha yelled as she ran over to him. He continued to let out pained yells as he tried to get the jam out of his eyes.

'Jaune, Rapier Wasps!' he heard Victor yell again. He heard their buzzing as Pyrrha placed her arms upon his shoulders. He quickly pulled her down and shielded her with his own body as he increased his density. They were soon upon him, stabbing at him with their stingers. Several other voices began to yell out before a large gust of wind rushed past them. The buzzing ceased after the wind died down, allowing Jaune and Pyrrha to get back to their feet.

"Pyrrha, are you alright?" he asked her as he let her go.

"I should be asking you that! Let me see your eyes," she told him as she placed her hands on his cheeks. He took a deep breath as he slowly opened his eyes. His attempt proved futile however as his eyes continued to burn. But for the brief moment, he had them open he spied something in the distance. On the cliff that stood behind Pyrrha, he saw four people looking down at him.

He knew who they were. There was no one else here with them, so it had to be them. He ground his teeth together as he inhaled then exhaled a deep breath. He opened his eyes once more, this time they shined gold as he glared up at Cardin and the rest of his team. "I tried being nice," he muttered before he removed Pyrrhas hands from his face and leaped into the air. His decreased density allowed him to glide over to the cliff and land in front of team CRDL, his golden eyes glaring coldly at them as he began to walk towards them slowly. "At first, you were just an annoyance." he looked to Cardin. "But now? Now you've pissed me off."

He could see the RDL of CRDL shake as he moved towards them, his glare never wavering. Russel began to rush him, but he quickly found himself kissing the dirt as Jaune back-handed him to the ground. Dove was next, but before he could even think of what to do, the next thing he knew was that his face was in the palm of Jaunes hand before being driven into the ground. Jaune then stomped on his chest as he continued his way towards the leader. Sky was the last obstacle in his way. Jaune ducked under a hook and planted his foot into the teen's jaw, sending him down beside his teammates.

Usually, these attacks would not have affected them much with their aura protecting them. But, most people couldn't increase their density, which as an added benefit could multiply the force of his attacks if he wished to do so.

He reached Cardin before he could ready his mace, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt. He pushed him into a nearby tree trunk, the force from doing so causing the entire tree to shake. Cardin regained his senses enough to look and find Jaune readying to hit him. He closed his eyes and waited to be thrashed about but found that it never came as a single loud crack sounded out. Cardin reopened his eyes and looked into Jaunes cold golden eyes. He turned to his left shoulder and found Jaunes arm extended towards him. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw a large hole that nearly cut the tree in two where Jaunes fist lay.

He shakily looked back to the blond as he withdrew his fist. "If I wanted to, that could have very easily been your face. And if that had happened, you would not be listening to me right now. No, you'd be on a Bullhead headed to Vale with me. One of us would be going into the ICU, and the other would be in cuffs. I think you're smart enough to figure out which is which." Jaune said, his voice never wavering from it's cold, near emotionless, tone. "You're lucky that jar hadn't hit Pyrrha or any of my friends. If it had, then you wouldn't be going to an ICU, you'd be going to a morgue."

Jaune released his grip on Cardin's collar before driving a knee into his gut. Cardin doubled over and fell to his knees before being forced into the ground as Jaune stomped down on his back. "I tried to be nice about this. I did not wish for any of this to happen. Now I'm giving you an ultimatum, you either leave me and my friends be or I will make you regret ever setting foot onto this campus. Am I understood?" he did not receive an answer. "Am. I. Understood?" he asked steadily as he pulled Cardin's head up by grabbing the back of his chest-plate.

"Yes! Yes, I understand!" Cardin told him.

Jaune released him as he rose back to his feet. "Good." he began to walk away as he brushed the dust off his clothes, stepping between CRDL's downed bodies as he began to leave the small clearing. The sound of trees parting caught his attention and as he turned he watched an Ursa Major make its way into the clearing. His eyes narrowed as he moved to grab his sword. The Ursa charged him but was stopped as Cardin slammed his mace into the Ursas side. The Ursa quickly switched its attention to Cardin, letting out a roar as it charged him.

Jaune kept his blade at the ready as he watched Cardin fight the Ursa. He was able to get a few hits in, but with no real defense, he was getting swatted around like a ragdoll. Jaune was tempted to rush in and help, but he wished to see if Cardin could hold his own against the beast.

Cardin was thrown back into a tree by another swat from the Ursa. His aura flashed around his body as he glared at it. The Ursa sniffed the air for a moment and turned to look down at Russel as he still laid on the ground. Cardin's eyes widened as he saw the Ursa begin to move towards his partner. Winchester ran forward and slammed his mace into the beasts face. Pressing the button on his weapons handle he sent the Ursa back several feet.

The Ursa rose to its feet quickly and let out another roar as it and Cardin rushed one another again. Cardin gripped his mace with both hands as he swung upward at its head as it stood up to swat at him. Cardin's swing connected first and sent the Ursas head flying up. His breath was ragged as the Grimms body began to turn into dust. He looked at his hands as he continued to hold his mace and saw a faint golden shimmer resonating from them. He looked back to Jaune and saw the same light shining from his eyes before he turned away from him.

Jaunes eyes turned back to their natural color as he descended from the hill and his friends ran up towards him. "Jaune?! Are you ok?!" Pyrrha questioned as she reached him.

"We heard fighting, are you well?" Ren asked.

"Did those jerks hurt you, Fearless Leader?! I WILL BREAK THEM!" Nora yelled as she pulled ut Magnhild in its hammer form.

"Everything's taken care of. Now I just need to get this crap out of my eyes," Jaune told them as he clenched his eyes closed again.

He felt two sets of hands grab and throw his arms over their shoulders. "Let's get you some help then."

He then felt his legs brought off the ground and placed on someone's shoulders. He figured it was Nora. "Don't worry, Jauney, we'll save you!" Yep, it was Nora.

"Guys, I can still walk," he told them.

"But you're hurt, Fearless Leader! We need to save you!" Nora said.

Jaune just released a heavy sigh as his team began to carry him back towards the Bullhead.

* * *

The following three days passed by as if they were an after-thought. After returning to Beacon, Angela helped get all the sap off his face and out of his eyes. She also prescribed him some meds as the sap now gave him a cold. It wasn't anything that could keep him from classes, but it was enough to affect him to a degree. Speaking of the sap, the one who threw the jar at him had since been summoned to the Headmasters office and he, along with his whole team, was assigned to community service for the rest of the semester. Jaune was asked if the punishment was fair and thought it was more than sufficient. No one was gravely hurt, at most team CRDL walked away with a few bruises, and their pride was taken down several notches.

The four of them had avoided Jaune since Forever Fall and also seemed to stop harassing the other students. Though, Jaune knew that could change after a while. Some people never change; some don't want too. Jaune sent thoughts such as those to the back of his mind, if that were to come up he would deal with it again.

He currently found himself atop the roof of the dormitory once again, looking up to the shattered moon. In the previous years, he had often done this several times over in his travels. His surrounding may have changed, as did the people, but the heavens always remained the same. It was comforting, to an extent. No matter where life led him, some things never change.

The sound of a door opening brought him out of his train of thought. He turned to find Ren walking towards him, his usual stoic expression adorning his face. "Thought I'd find you up here."

"Something up?" Jaune asked as his friend came and stood beside him.

"Nothing serious thought I'd come and let you know that dinner's almost ready," Ren informed him.

"Pancakes?" June asked as he couldn't help but smile.

"Not tonight. Rice and spicy beef curry." Ren told him.

Jaune couldn't help but lick his lips upon hearing what dinner would be. "Sounds delicious."

"Come on then, don't want to keep the girls waiting," Ren told him as he turned back to the door, but stopped in his tracks.

Jaune looked back to the door as he stayed sitting down and saw Cardin standing in the doorway to the staircase. Ren clenched his hands closed as Jaune rose to his feet. "What do you want, Cardin?" he asked.

"To talk."

Jaune arched his brow at the response. He was tempted to question him about this sudden change and to rip him a new one over asking for such a thing. He gave him a chance, and he spat in his face. Though, something told him to hear him out. If nothing else he would be able to put all this behind him, hopefully. "Ren, go back to the room."

"Jaune?" Ren questioned him as he turned to look at him.

"I'll be fine. Even if Cardin were to try something, he can't do anything to me." Jaune told him as he placed an assuring hand upon his shoulder. After a short moment of silence, Ren simply nodded and began to walk towards the staircase. He glanced at Cardin for a brief moment, glaring at him as he did so. As he walked through the doorway, Cardin grabbed the knob and closed the door. "Speak; now. Before I change my-!"

"I'm sorry," Cardin said suddenly spoke.

"Say again?"

"I'm sorry, I was wrong. What more do you want me to say?" Cardin asked as he looked away from Jaune. "I want to bury the hatchet."

Jaunes eyes widened at hearing those words. Honestly, he was surprised by this. He didn't know why Cardin had approached him, but this outcome was most certainly one of the last that he expected to hear. "Why now? I tried to do that before, but you turned me down. What made you change your mind?"

"I thought that to accept it would make me weak. I saw you as inferior to me, someone who was not my equal. I was wrong." Cardin told him.

"Thinking that way won't get you very far in this life, Cardin. It'll only earn you more enemies than friends." Jaune said in response.

"That was one of the few things my father taught me when he was around. It's the only thing I have left of him." Cardin said.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Truly, I am." Jaune told him as he crossed his arms over his chest. "But that doesn't justify everything you've done."

"It was how I was raised; I didn't know any other way. But you're right; it doesn't." Cardin said as he looked up at Jaune.

"You seem to be agreeing with me an awful lot. What are you playing at, Cardin?"

"I'm trying to say I know what I've done is wrong. I don't know how else to do it."

"Simply agreeing with me and making excuses won't convince me you're sorry. Prove it through action, not words." Jaune told him as he extended a hand. "Though, I am willing to bury the hatchet if you're truly serious."

"I am," Cardin said as he shook Jaunes hand. They separated after a brief moment, and Jaune moved to walk past him. "Ar- I mean, Jaune." he turned back around. "I know I have no right to ask this of you, but could you perhaps... help me become better?" Jaunes brow arched. "I know you helped me fight that Ursa back in the forest. I don't know how but I know for a fact something helped me kill that Grimm. A power I never felt before."

"And why do you think I had something to do with that? Maybe you unlocked some strength you had not had previously," he said.

"It sounds crazy, I know, but I saw a golden light shine on my hands for a brief moment. The same light that shone from your eyes that day." Cardin said as he pointed at him.

Jaune mentally cursed himself. He had indeed aided Cardin during that fight. It was his main power as the Rider of Conquest. He could strengthen others with his presence, and they, in turn, would enhance his own strength at the same time. The way Victor had explained it to him was that a leader, a Conqueror, strengthened those around him, his followers and they, in turn, strengthened him. He had used the power against the Chimera during Initiation, but no one noticed. It seemed Cardin was more perceptive than he thought.

"Say I did help you at that time, why would I help you now? I have no reason to do so." Jaune stated,

"Because, we both know, you are far stronger than me. Every time we've fought, you've beaten me without breaking a sweat. That's why I'm asking you because I know that you can help me." Cardin said.

Jaune let out a deep sigh as he closed his eyes and pondered what to do. On the one hand, Cardin did not deserve any help. He harassed those he deemed lesser than himself and seemed to enjoy it genuinely. That upset Jaune greatly. His reasoning for it sounded truthful; it was not uncommon for some parents to imprint their views onto their children. He felt sorry for Cardin for that, but was that reason enough to help him?

No. No, it wasn't.

If he wished to acquire his aid, then he would have to prove it with more than words. "Prove to me you that truly wish to change and I will consider it," Jaune told him as he turned from him.

"How?" Cardin asked desperately.

"That's for you to decide," Jaune said as he looked over his shoulder at him. "If you truly wish to find redemption than you must do so on your own. I cannot help you in that endeavor." Jaune said as he finally left the roof.

_'By the way, why did you help him before? I never asked.'_ Victor questioned.

'No one deserves to die to one of those monsters. Not even someone like Cardin.' he mentally responded. Upon making his way down the steps, he found Ren at the staircase's bottom, waiting for him. "Hope dinner isn't cold."

"Probably not. Though, I can't guarantee it will all still be there." Jaune arched his brow. "Nora invited team RWBY to come to dinner."

"Why didn't you say that before?! Come on let's go!" he ordered before the two of them ran through the door that led to the second floor and made their way towards their dorm.

Beacon indeed would be an exciting experience for him.

* * *

**AN: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, it was a lot of fun to write. But most of these chapters are fun to write, I'm just glad to be writing RWBY again.**

**My main reason for doing this with Cardin is both to make the story more unique and to show why I think Cardin acted the way he did in volume 1. Since they never give us a reason as to why he messes with Jaune and the other students, and since it's true in both in the show and in real life that parents influence how their children view certain things I believe his reasonings make sense.**

**And just to let you guys know, the new cover art is what each of the Riders tattoos look like. Wish parts of them weren't cut off though.**

**Anyway, that's enough rambling for one chapter. Hope you all stay tuned for the next chapter.**

**Later!**


	8. Into Vale We Go

_**Chapter 8 - Into Vale We Go**_

* * *

**Beta Reader - **_**WhiteNightBlade**_

* * *

The sound of his scroll going off woke him from his slumber. He slowly opened his eyes before the light emitting from the screen forced him to shut them again. Turning the brightness down on his scroll, Jaune was able to read the message that was sent to him.

It's ready - V

"About damn time," he muttered to himself as he rose from his bed. Stretching his arms out over his head, he had to stifle a groan as he did so. He quickly made his way into the bathroom and took a quick shower. Upon exiting the shower, he dressed into a white t-shirt and some blue-jeans before wiping the mirror over the sink of the fog that had formed on it and looked at his reflection. He grabbed his toothbrush and quickly scrubbed all of his teeth before rinsing his mouth out with the sink's faucet. As he looked into the mirror, he found Victor standing behind him.

_'So we're finally gonna be able to complete your arsenal. Shame Vince couldn't have it finished before we arrived.'_ Victor spoke.

'We've survived so far without it, but you're right. At least we're getting it now.' Jaune said as he began to make his way out of the bathroom.

_'That's true. Think you'll bring your team along? You could make a day of it down in Vale.'_ Victor questioned.

'I'll ask them. Also have to let Ruby know, I did promise her that I would bring her along when we first met.'

_'Best get to it then. You don't want to get stuck in the rush of going into the city.'_ Victor said before disappearing.

Upon exiting the bathroom, a gust of wind brushed past him as the door slammed closed behind him. He looked to the door then to the two members of his team who were still present in the room. Ren let out a heavy sigh as he laid back down in his bed as Pyrrha rubbed the crust from her eyes. It didn't take Jaune long to piece together who rapidly took his place in the bathroom.

"Morning," he said as he threw his towel onto his bed.

"Morning Jaune," Pyrrha said before letting out a yawn Jaune found pretty adorable.

Ren just waved at him.

"You guys interested in going into Vale?" he asked as he sat on his bed and began to put on his boots.

"What's the occasion?" Pyrrha asked as she got out of bed.

"I got a message earlier that my shield is finally finished, so I'm going down to get it. We can make a day of it if you guys want," he said as he rose and walked over to the coat rack they had by the door and grabbed his jacket.

Ren raised his hand and gave a thumbs up.

"That sounds lovely!" Pyrrha spoke before she stretched.

"Yeah! Let's do it!" Nora yelled as she poked her head out from the bathroom before quickly going back in.

"Alright, well, I'm gonna go see of team RWBY might wanna come along. Ruby will be upset if I don't ask her to come along. Be back in a minute." Jaune told his team before exiting the room. Taking a few steps, he stood before team RWBY's dorm room and knocked on the door three times. After a short while, Ruby stood before him, her hair all disheveled. "Nice bed head there, Rubes."

"Morning, Jaune," she said as too rubbed her eyes. "What's up?"

"I just wanted to let you know my shield is finally done, and I wanted to know if you wanted to come with-!" he stopped as Ruby grabbed a whistle out of nowhere and blew into it. The rest of her team awoke suddenly, holding their ears to block out the noise.

"Rise and shine, Team RWBY!" Ruby told her team.

"I swear, I am going to freeze you solid if you don't stop using that accursed whistle," Weiss spoke as she rose up from her bed.

"Huh? What's going on?" Yang asked groggily as she looked over the edge.

Blake placed her pillow over her head.

"Come on guys! We're going into Vale today!" Ruby announced.

"Why?" Blake asked, her voice muffled by her pillow.

"For...um..."

"Team bonding," Jaune whispered as he leaned close to her.

"Team bonding!" Ruby proclaimed.

Weiss narrowed her gaze at her partner. "I'm going back to sleep."

"Come on guys, don't be that like that! The early bird catches the worm after all."

"Screw the worm." Yang declared. "But I'm up now so whatever, let's do it." she then made her way into the bathroom.

"We'll meet you guys at the air-field in say, " Ruby looked to the bathroom door, then back to Jaune. "Half an hour? Maybe more?"

"Huh, figured it'd take longer than that, but alright. See you there," he told them before Ruby shut her team's room door. A few more steps and Jaune was back in his own team's dorm. Ren now sat against the wall by the bathroom door as Pyrrha sat at the end of her bed, putting her hair up in her pony-tail as she did so.

"Will they be joining us?" Pyrrha asked as she set her brush down on the table between hers and Jaunes' beds.

"They will...in about half an hour," he told her.

"That's when we'll probably get there anyway," Ren said as he banged on the door again. "Nora, come on!"

"Lie Ren, you know better than to rush a lady when she's getting ready!" Nora chastised from inside the bathroom. Jaune and Pyrrha couldn't help but laugh as Ren shook his head.

"So, Jaune," he turned to face his partner, "who messaged you about your shield being done?"

"An old friend. He runs a weapons shop in the city and agreed to make it for me," he told her as he walked over and leaned against the room door.

"Oh, that's good! I'm happy to know your friend is doing it for you." Pyrrha said with a smile.

"Yeah, we met a couple years back. He's a good guy." Jaune told her, smiling at her in turn.

"Good to know."

After a few minutes, Nora emerged from the shower wearing only a towel. Jaune quickly phased through the door to the room as Ren shot into the bathroom before Nora decided to disrobe. Jaune held his face in his hands as he leaned against his team's dorm room, a torrent of giggles resonating from within. Despite Nora being... well Nora, he could honestly say he wouldn't trade this for anything else. Instead of going back into the room he decided to sit beside the door, waiting for his team to join him. A good ten minutes passed, and the entrance to team RWBY's dorm suddenly flung open, catching his attention. Ruby stepped out with her whistle still in her mouth and blew into it one more time.

A hand quickly took the accursed piece of tin and handed it to the blonde haired member of the all-female team. The brawler proceeded to crush the whistle in her right hand as her younger sister stared wide-eyed at her. "It is done."

"The evil is vanquished," Blake added.

"Justice." Weiss finished.

"Traitors! All of you!" Ruby said as she pointed at her team.

"Well, that didn't take as long as you said it would," Jaune said, earning their attention.

"Yeah, Yang didn't take as long as she usually does," Ruby told him.

"It was quite surprising, actually," Blake added.

"Hey! This fabulous mane takes time and effort to maintain." Yang said as she grabbed hold of her hair and began to run her hand through her golden locks.

Jaune cupped his chin as he looked to Yang. "It is indeed a thing of beauty. Though, I don't think it's on the same level as the woman it is attached too."

Yang turned to him, eyes wide for a passing moment until a smirk adorned her face. "Not bad yourself there, Lady-Killer."

"If you two are going to flirt so openly, please do it over there, away from me," Weiss said as she pointed down the hall with her thumb.

"I second that," Blake said as she pointed upward.

"Yang! Stop it!" Ruby ordered.

"Oh stop being such a spoilsport, Ruby, were just having a bit of fun! Right, Jaune?" Yang asked.

"Yeah." he agreed as his own smirk grew. "At least for now."

Yang wiggled her finger at him. "Don't talk so big there, Jauney boy. You can look all you want, but you gotta earn the right to get a hold of this." she gestured to herself.

"For the love of the gods, both of you, please shut up," Weiss told them as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Are we going into Vale or not, Ruby?!"

"We're waiting for the rest of JNPR!" Ruby told her partner.

"I thought you said this was about bonding as a team?" Blake questioned.

"Indeed. Why are we waiting for them?" Weiss also questioned.

"Because...um...uh..." Ruby stammered.

"She's coming with me when I get my shield," Jaune said as he placed his left hand atop Ruby's head. "She figured the more, the merrier. Plus, we can explore Vale together, and that should be fun."

The other members looked among themselves for a time before turning to face him. "Fair point," Blake said.

"I do believe several students from the other schools will be arriving today as well," Weiss added.

"So what? You wanna get a look at our competition?" Yang asked.

"No! Simply to observe!" Weiss defended.

"Isn't that exactly what Yang said, only worded differently?" Ruby inquired.

"Hush, Ruby!" Weiss scolded.

"Why are you worrying about those other teams?! Your main threat is right here!" Nora declared as she exited team JNPR's dorm. "We're the ones who are gonna win the tournament!"

"You have to get past us first!" Yang challenged. The two powerhouses of their respective teams then stared one another down as everyone else watched it unfold.

Jaune stepped between the two of them, lightly pushing them away from one another. "Easy there, ladies. Let's save that for the tournament. Now, how about we get this underway."

"Yeah! Into Vale, we go!" Ruby said as she began to walk off, her finger pointing the way forward.

"Ruby, that's the wrong way," Yang told her.

Ruby spun on her heel and began walking the other direction. "R-Right! I knew that!" she declared. Everyone let out a laugh as they followed the youngest member of their group. Soon enough, they made their way to the airfields, and they all boarded a Dustplane. The city came into view quickly as they ascended and the morning light cascaded over the city. The sight was truly mesmerizing. Soon enough they found themselves setting down at the Beacon airpad in Vale. Jaune was growing accustomed to flying, thankfully, and didn't feel his stomach churn this time as he flew into the city. They quickly exited the plane and made their way into the city. Jaune promptly pulled out his scroll and sent another message.

On my way now.- J

See you soon. - V

"Who you messaging there, Jaune?" Ruby inquired.

"The man who made my shield. I let him know I'm on my way," he informed her.

"Oh, I can't wait to see the weapons! How many does he have?! What kind are they?!" Ruby asked as she grabbed his arm and began to shake it, trying to get the answers out of him as though he were a piñata.

"I think it'll be better if you find out for yourself," Jaune told her. "Plus I can't remember all of them."

"Ok!" Ruby responded with a smile.

Soon enough they found themselves in the cities center. The hustle and bustle of the city were beginning to build as everyone started to head to their place of work. The group walked past a bookshop on their way to the weapons shop, causing Blake to stop in her tracks. In the window, a poster hangs advertising the next Ninjas of Love books release. "Blake? Everything alright?" Jaune asked as he walked back and looked at the poster.

"Oh! It's nothing!" Blake told him as she was brought out of her stupor.

"She's excited her favorite book's sequel is coming out," Yang told him.

"Nice. What genre is it?" he asked the book lover.

"It's...a romance novel," she told him, continuing to look at the poster rather than at him.

"That's one way of saying it." Yang teased.

Blake sent her partner a glare before noticing Jaune smiling down at her. "Speaking of books, think I could borrow one of yours?"

Blakes' eyes widened at his request, as did both Yang's and Weiss'. "Um...I don't see why not. I haven't finished reading it though, just to let you know."

"That's fine. Do you have any other books I could borrow?" he inquired as he moved to continue down the sidewalk.

"A few," Blake told him as she followed after him, rejoining the others as she did so.

"Alright then, here, we can discuss this further when we get back to Beacon," he told her as he continued to lead the way. It did not take much longer before they had arrived at their destination. A medium sized shop with the letters 'HCW', standing for 'Hunters Clothes and Weaponry', lit up above the doorway stood on the outskirts of the inner city. Two guards stood at the entrance as the sign in the door read closed.

"Awww! It's closed!" Ruby whined.

"Well great! Now what?!" Yang asked angrily. Jaune smirked as he continued forward. "Uhh, hey Jaune? You can read, right? "

Jaune ignored her question and walked up the front doors. The guards looked at him for a moment before they both nodded their heads. "Good morning, mister Arc. How are you today?" one of the asked.

"I'm good. And I'm sorry, I don't mean to seem like I don't want to talk, but I came to retrieve my special order. Vince messaged me saying it was done." he told them.

"Ah, yes! Mister Lusro has been here since four in the morning finishing your order." the other guard told him as the first guard unlocked the door. "Please, head on in. No doubt he's waiting for you."

"As you were then," he told them as he began to make his way into the building before he stopped. "They're coming with me be the way, and they're trustworthy."

"If they are with you sir, they are free to head in." the first guard said as Jaune ushered them forth. The others looked at each other in surprise from the exchange while Ruby was the first to step into the building and Jaune swore she started floating as she looked at all the weapons that were on display. Everyone else quickly followed and marveled at the weapons that the shop had.

"By. The. Gods! This place is a dream come true!" she said as she began to speed around the shop.

"I think we've lost her," Yang called out as she went over to a case that held a pair of gauntlets that had three blades coming out of where the wearers' knuckles would be. "These are nice, but mine are better."

"About damn time you showed up." a voice called out, causing everyone to turn to their right to find who said that. There stood a tall somewhat muscular man, about six foot eight, with brown hair that was tied into a bun atop his head, dark green eyes, and pale skin. He wore a brown tightfitting tank-top, a pair of brown fingerless gloves, black pants and black boots. Everyone could see that his arms bore several deep scars as he rested one arm against a nearby shelf. Two brown cat ears protruded from his hair that wiggled slightly as his eyes looked each of them over before locking onto the only person he had told to come in.

"Well I'm not exactly late, am I?" he inquired as he broke from his friends and walked forward.

"No, but you could have been here sooner." the man said with a small smirk as he too walked forward. He and Jaune grabbed hold of one another's hands before bringing one another into a hug before separating. "How's Beacon been?"

"It's been...interesting."

"Well, at least it's not boring." he offered before looking back to the group. "So, you gonna introduce me?"

"Right. Guys, meet Vince Lusro, the owner of this place." Jaune told them.

"Nice to meet you all. Any friend of Jaune's is welcome here."

"Nice to meet you! I'm Nora Valkyrie, our fearless leader's enforcer!"

"I'm Lie Ren."

"I'm Pyrrha Nikos, Jaune's partner."

"Partner huh?" Vince asked with a smirk. Pyrrhas face took on a dark shade of red as Jaune shook his head and Vince laughed. "And now who are you three?"

"I'm Weiss Schnee."

"Yang Xiao-Long."

"Blake Belladonna."

"I assume you three are part of another team, so where's the eighth member of this little group?" Vince asked as his ears twitched.

Before anyone could say anything, a flash of red skid to a stop just as it was about to slam into Vince, he looked down and found the youngest member of the group standing before him, bouncing slightly as a broad smile spread across her face. "Here I am, Sir! And, I must say, this is the best weapons shop I have ever been in!"

"Thank you. And you are?"

"Oh! I'm Ruby, Ruby Rose sir!" she answered, standing up straight as she did so. "Can I have your autograph?"

Vince laughed as Jaune let out a short chuckle. "Sure. And please stop calling me sir, just call me Vince."

Ruby saluted in response.

"Now, let's get to the reason you're here. This way." Vince motioned, turning away from everyone as Jaune followed him. They quickly followed Jaunes lead and followed after Vince.

As they did everyone got a look at Vince's back, more specifically the tattoo that sat on his right shoulder. Pyrrha recognized it immediately as the same tattoo Jaune had, only Vince's was black. And in place of a bow, a black sword sat in the middle of the horseshoe with a pair of scales hanging off both sides of the blade. She could only assume they got them together before, but she still wondered what the tattoos were for. That train of thought ended as she suddenly stopped, bumping into Ruby in the process. Vince pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the five locks he had on the door.

"Careful on your way down," he told them as he made his way down the stairs after flipping on a switch for the lights. Down in the basement, a large room became illuminated, and the sight made Rubys pupils turned into hearts.

The walls had even more weapons. These though were more complex than the ones on sale above. "This is paradise."

"You would say that," Weiss said as she looked around the room. It was indeed a place Ruby would think her own personal heaven would consist of. Though, one had to wonder how Vince was able to afford the materials to make them all.

Vince moved over to his workbench and grabbed a gauntlet off of it before tossing it to Jaune. "There you go. Try it on," he told him. Jaune nodded as he rolled up his jacket's sleeve and took off the glove he had on his left hand. The glove fit him just right as he fastened the straps on the underside of his arm. He looked it over, seeing a golden plate of metal sit atop the rest of the gauntlet with a round half sphere in the middle of the golden piece of metal. The hemisphere also had several different dust crystals placed into it.

"How'd you get it to work?" Jaune questioned as he looked over to Vince.

"Look at your hand." Jaune did as requested and found that there was a small red button on the side of his index finger's knuckle. He looked over to Vince for a moment, receiving a nod, and pressed the button. The golden sheet of metal extended out and formed into a round shield that covered the entirety of his left arm. The front of the shield had several grooves, similar to those that were on Jaune's sword. The grooves intertwined over and over again, making the shield look like its face had scales. Each slot had a different type of dust woven into it, giving the shield an even more unique look.

"That's amazing! Can the shield be used to channel dust like Jaune's sword can?!" Ruby asked excitedly as she looked over Jaunes shield.

"No. The dust serves another function." Vince told her, causing her and everyone else aside from Jaune to turn to him. "As you no doubt know, Jaune's blade uses dust for purely offensive reasons. Well, the shield uses it for purely defensive reasons. By weaving the dust into the shield itself, as you can see, it can deflect and protect against any and all dust based attacks. And, of course, it aids in defending against any other type of attack."

"That's...smart," Weiss told him.

"Very well thought out." Ren concurred.

"Took me a while to figure out how to exactly get that done for him, but I think you'll find hardly anything will get past that shield," Vince said. "Now go ahead and see the other functions. All of you may want to step back a bit."

Everyone took several steps back as Jaune pressed another button, one where his index finger would be when he made a fist. He pushed that button, and the shield shot off, embedding into the far wall as a result.

"Well, that'll come in handy," Yang called out.

"Indeed." Pyrrha agreed.

"I would hope so," Jaune said as he pressed the button again. Both the gauntlet and the shield glowed purple. The shield shot back towards him, reattaching to his gauntlet. "Gravity dust?" Vince nodded. " Nice touch."

"Well, there was no other way for that to work. There's no metal or alloy that could bounce back to you, and there's no type of metal that's strong enough for the shield and can be magnetized. It wasn't easy though; gravity dust isn't cheap." Vince told him. "But forget about that, go ahead and test out the final feature."

Jaune pressed the final button, and the shield shifted once again. The back side of the shield collapsed into the front half as it expanded slightly. The scales on the shield's face also collapsed into it, leaving only the outer edge of the shield's front half. A long string then appeared between the two ends of the remaining part of the shield as a slot opened on the side of the gauntlet. The shield was now in its second form; it's crossbow form. "I do believe you have outdone yourself, Vince," Jaune told him as he pressed the first button again, putting the crossbow back into its collapsed form.

"For now," Vince said as he pulled out a set of crossbow bolts out from under his workbench. "Here you go, this should set you up for a while." Jaune took the bolt pouches that sat in the box and put them into his coat pockets. As he went to say something else Vince stepped forward and grabbed hold of Jaunes jacket. Everyone wondered what he was doing before he put his finger through the hole that was ripped into the jacket's shoulder by the Chimera during initiation. "The hell did you do this time? Get stabbed again?"

"Again?!" everyone else said.

"Kinda. I fought a Chimera during initiation, and it stabbed me when I was pinned to the ground." Jaune told him as he ignored the question from the rest of the group.

"Chimera? Surprised one of those things could be so close to Beacon." Vince said as he let go of Jaune jacket.

"It didn't stand a chance against us!" Nora said.

Vince walked over to another table on the far side of the room and grabbed a jacket off of the table. He walked back over and handed it to Jaune. "Here. I was gonna wait to give this to you, but oh well."

Jaune unfolded the jacket, seeing that it looked very similar to the one he wore currently. The only real difference was the letters HCW stitched on top of the right shoulder. "Vince, is this what I think it is?"

Vince simply smiled.

"What are you talking about, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked.

"Watch," Jaune told them as he grabbed a dagger from the bench and cut the sleeve of the jacket.

"What are you doing?!" Weiss yelled. She began to speak again, but her voice died in her throat as she watched the sleeve mend itself, a faint light emanating from it as it did so. "How...?"

"This jacket is made of a little something I like to call, aura fibers. The jacket itself has aura literally sewn into it." Vince told them

"How did you manage that?" Ren asked, he too awed by the information.

"I unlocked the aura in some silkworms. The silk they weave has the resulting effect when woven into any clothing." Vince said as Jaune removed his other jacket and put on his new one.

"That's...ingenious," Blake said.

"Thanks," Vince said as he smiled over at her.

"So, how much I owe you?" Jaune asked as he finished putting on the jacket.

Vince looked over Jaune for a moment before giving his answer. "Nothing."

"Vince, I can't let you just give this to me." Jaune insisted.

"Then consider it a gift for passing Beacons initiation. And I insist." Vince told him with a smile. The two then hugged again, this time holding the embrace for a little bit longer. Jaunes friends all smiled at the sight, thankful that Jaune had friends like Vince after he had lost his family. The two separated shortly afterward and Vince spoke, "Now, you all should head on out of here. You probably have better things to do then stay in a weapons shop."

"I can!" Ruby said as she raised her hand.

Vince chuckled. "Just cause you can doesn't mean you should. Tell you what, come back later, or another day, and we can talk all you want about all the stuff in my shop. Deal?"

"Deal!" Ruby answered as she extended her hand.

Vince smiled again as he gladly shook her hand. He then motioned for them all to leave the way they came. They did so, but Blake stopped as she began to take the first step. Beside the stairs sat a stack of crates and a familiar looking blue cloth was stuck underneath the top container. Her curiosity got the better of her as she reached for it but quickly stopped as a hand stopped her from entirely pulling it out. She looked to find Vince looming over her, staring down at her. "You have heard that old saying, 'curiosity killed the cat,' right?" she didn't answer. "I suggest you go on and join your friends, miss Belladonna," he whispered, so low no ordinary set of ears could hear.

His grip on her arm released as she pulled away and made her way up the stairs. Vince looked to the cloth Blake had been transfixed by and quickly pulled it out, stuffing it in his pocket immediately as he followed them up.

"Thanks for everything, Vince. Let me know if there's anything you need help with, and I'll do what I can to help." Jaune told him.

"I'll remember that," Vince said as he opened the doors for them, allowing someone else in the building in the process.

"Opening the door for me? How chivalrous of you." Coco said as she met Vince's gaze.

"Coco?"

The Huntress-in-training turned to find a familiar blonde looking at her, his team and another four girls accompanying him. "Jaune? What are you doing here? The shop just opened."

"The owner and I are old friends," Jaune informed her.

"Huh, small world." She said before waving to the others. "Nice to meet you all. I'm Coco Adel."

"You getting friendly with the upper-classmen there, Lady-Killer? What, are we not enough eye candy for you?" Yang teased with a smirk.

"No, you all are almost too much for me. Sometimes I think I'm gonna get a cavity looking at you all." Jaune told them as he looked back at her, a similar smirk adorning his face as well. Every girl, save Nora and Yang, blushed red at his compliment. Nora laughed at everyone else's reaction as Yang just smiled at him.

"Not bad there, kid. But he's all yours, girls. He's not exactly my type." Coco said before looking back to Vince. "And speaking of my type, how is my favorite shopkeep today? From the looks of things, you look mighty fine."

"Flattery will not get you a discount, miss Adel. You do however get points for trying." Vince told her with a smile.

"Honey, I already told you, call me Coco. You should get used to saying it; you'll be saying it a lot more soon enough." Coco said with a smirk.

"Ok, enough of this," Weiss said as she squeezed her way passed Coco and walked out of the shop, her face bright red as she did so.

"Right behind you, Weiss!" Ruby called as she followed her partner, her face matching her namesake as she did.

"We should all probably go. See you later, Vince." Jaune said as he left with everyone else.

"Later, Jaune," Vince responded as they all left his building, save Coco.

* * *

The next hour and a half passed by quickly as they all enjoyed exploring the city. The hustle earlier had begun to calm down somewhat as the middle of the day drew near. Jaune and everyone else busied themselves by seeing the preparations for the Vytal festival, as well grab themselves something to eat. After satiating their hunger, they found themselves following Weiss as she began to look for students who had already arrived for the tournament. Jaune currently was eating the sub he had bought earlier as the others conversed among themselves.

"This is so pretty! Are festivals always like this?!" Nora asked as she looked at all the decorations that were up.

"Of course! Have you never been to a festival before?" Weiss asked as continued to lead the way.

"Our home never held festivals. And we were never able to attend one after we left." Ren said drinking from his soda.

"That's unfortunate. Argus always held yearly seasonal festivals, my mother and I always had such a fun time at them." Pyrrha chimed in.

"Patch as had some good festivals too, though nothing on the scale of this," Yang added.

"I wonder if Dad will be able to attend the tournament? I wanna see him watch us kick but!" Ruby said as she karate chopped the air.

"I don't know about that, sis. Working at Signal probably has him pretty busy right now." Yang told her, causing Ruby to hang her head as a result.

"He'll no doubt watch your matches though," Jaune told her to try and cheer her up.

"Yeah, you're right, Jaune. Thanks." Ruby said as she smiled up at him.

As they neared the dock and looked out into the harbor a sight out of the corner of Jaunes eye stopped him in his tracks. Turning to look at it he found that a shop was taped off from the public with shattered glass all over the sidewalk as all the windows smashed. Walking towards the scene, he discovered that the building was a small dust shop. The others saw him walking towards it.

"Hey, what happened here?" Ruby asked the officers who were investigating the scene.

"Robbery. It's the second Dust shop to get hit this month." the officer told them.

"Same thing as the last one!" the officer inside the store called out. "The register hasn't been touched! Just took all the dust!"

"Bizzare. Who would need that much dust?" the officer questioned the officer beside him.

"You think it might be the Fang?"

"Maybe? It could also be the Devils."

"Yeah, maybe."

"the Devils?" Ruby questioned aloud.

"A gang here in Vale. They steal from the council and just a general thorn in the side of the government." Blake informed her.

"Whichever group it was, they are all a bunch of degenerates. Especially those faunus in the White Fang." Weiss said.

"What's your problem?" Blake asked.

"My problem? I simply do not care for the criminally insane." Weiss told her.

"The White Fang are hardly a bunch of psychopaths." Blake crossed her arms over her chest. "They're a group of misguided faunus."

"Misguided?! They want to wipe humanity off the planet!" Weiss objected.

"Then they are very misguided!" Blake turned away from her to look at the shop. "Either way, it doesn't explain why they would rob a dust shop in the middle of downtown Vale,"

"Blake's got a point there," Ruby added. "Besides, the police never caught that Torchwhick guy I fought before initiation. Maybe it was him."

"That's highly possible. You did say he only took the dust from the shop you were in." Jaune said as he threw away the paper he had his sandwich in.

"That doesn't change the fact the White Fang are nothing but scum. Those faunus only know how to lie, cheat and steal." Weiss said in defense of herself.

"That's not necessarily true," Yang told her.

"Yeah! Vince was pretty cool!" Nora added.

"One good faunus doesn't absolve the rest," Weiss said.

"And a few bad faunus don't vilify the entire species," Jaune told her, getting annoyed by this topic of conversation. As it seemed Weiss was preparing a rebuttal a commotion in the bat caught their combined attention. They watched as a blonde haired monkey faunus outran the ships crew and two Vale officers. He ran past them, winking at Blake as he ran past and rounded a nearby corner. Victor materialized behind Jaune, completely invisible to all others, 'Well, there goes the competition.'

"Quick, we need to observe him!" Weiss called out as she gave chase to him.

Jaune shook his head as he watched the rest of her team run after her with Nora doing the same. Ren and Pyrrha looked to him, and he merely shrugged as he slowly followed them. A yelp and a crash sounded as they neared the corner team RWBY had just rounded, and upon catching up with them, Jaune found the whole team lying face-first on the ground. The faunus was nowhere to be seen as Weiss pick herself up off the ground.

"Drat! He got away!" she said as she dusted herself off.

"Uh...Weiss?" Yang spoke as she motioned to the ground.

Weiss looked down and found the girl that she had bumped into a few moments ago as she smiled up at her. Weiss jumped back and stood beside her team as the girl continued to lay on the ground. "Salutations!" she greeted.

"Uhh, you ok?" Yang asked.

"I am splendid!" the strange girl answered.

'She seems...nice?' Victor spoke.

'That's one what of saying it I guess.' Jaune responded mentally. "You wanna get up from there?"

She thought about it for a moment. "I do!" she then jumped up-right and stood before them. I'm Penny, and it's a pleasure to meet you all!"

Hi Penny, I'm Ruby."

"I'm Weiss."

"Blake."

"You sure you didn't hit your head?" Blake elbowed her in the side. "Oh, I'm Yang."

"I'm Nora!"

"Ren."

"Pyrrha."

"Jaune."

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" she said again.

"You already said that." Weiss pointed out.

"...So I did!" Penny said.

"Well, sorry for running into you," Weiss said as she began to turn around.

"Take care, friend!" Ruby told her.

"Later, Penny," Jaune said as he follows after them.

They began to walk back the way they came, and Weiss began to look around.

"Well, she was...weird," Yang said aloud.

"Now where did that faunus riffraff run off to?" she asked before looking in front of her and froze as she found Penny in front of her.

"What did you call me?" Penny questioned as she leaned towards them

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't think you heard me!" Yang defended.

"No, not you," Penny said as she moved past Yang and looked at Ruby. "You."

"Me?!" Ruby asked worriedly.

"You called me friend. Am I really your friend?" Penny questioned.

Ruby looked over penny shoulder and saw the members of her team who all motioned for her to say no. She then looked over to team JNPR. Nora held two thumbs up, Ren continued to drink his large soda, Pyrrha didn't meet her gaze, and Jaune shrugged. "Yeah, sure! Why not?" the other members of team RWBY all fell to the ground in response to their leaders' answer.

Penny was overjoyed at her response and threw her arms up into the air. "Sensational! We can paint our nails. and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!" she then turned and looked at Jaune and Ren. "Like these two!"

Jaune and Ren looked to one another as Ruby and Pyrrha blushed in response. "Oooo, can I join in on that?! That sounds like fun!" Nora said as she walked over and stood beside the two of them.

Penny gasped. "Does that mean you want to be my friend too?!"

"Of course!" Nora told her before pulling her into a bear hug. "We'll be the best of friends!"

"Sensational!" Penny said again as she returned the hug, making Nora groan as she tightened her grip on her. "This is the best day of my life!"

Everyone chuckled, WBY somewhat nervously, as the two girls took turns putting one another in bear hugs, seeming to try and break the others as they did so. After a short time, they released one another as Yang asked, "So, what are you doing in Vale?"

"I'm here to fight in the tournament!" she answered.

"Wait, you're fighting in the tournament?" Weiss asked, skeptical of the girl standing before them.

"I'm combat ready!" she responded with a salute.

"Forgive me, but you hardly look the part," she told her.

"Says the girl in a dress." Blake pointed out.

"It's a combat-skirt!" Weiss protested.

"Yeah!" Ruby agreed, slapping Weiss' hand as she extended it towards her.

"Yeah! What they said!" Nora said as she put both of them into headlocks. "What you got against combat skirts, huh?!"

Ren released a groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Nora, let them go," he told her.

She did as told and both girls fell to their knees as they desperately tried to refill their lungs. "Sorry, Ren!" she said as she skipped back over to his side.

Weiss rose back up to her feet first and coughed a few times. "Wait," she walked up and took hold of Penny's shoulders. "If you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that faunus rapscallion?"

Penny tilted her head. "Who?"

Weiss pulled a poorly drawn picture out to show her before continuing. "That filthy faunus from the boat!"

"Stop calling him that!" Blake yelled at her teammate, fed up with the constant insults she hurled. "Why do you keep calling him that, huh?! Stop calling him a rapscallion! Stop calling him a degenerate! He's a person."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Weiss released her grip on Penny. "Would you like me to stop referring to this trashcan as a trashcan? Or this lamppost into a lamppost?"

"Stop it!" Blake demanded.

"Stop what? He clearly broke the law." Weiss pointed out. "Give him time, he'll probably join up with those other faunus in the White Fang."

"Uhh! You ignorant little brat!" Blake yelled before turning and walking away from everyone.

"How dare you! I am your teammate!" Weiss yelled back as she followed after her.

Everyone watched the scene unfold and stood silent as Blake and Weiss continued to argue. Jaune released a heavy sigh at the sight of it. This was not what he had envisioned when they had set out together earlier in the day. Looking over to the remaining members of team RWBY, he saw that they both bore worried expressions on their faces. He wanted to try and assure them that things would soon end and they could continue to enjoy their day together. But in doing that he'd be lying to them since he no longer believed that himself.

"Should we...try and do something?" Pyrrha questioned.

"I'm not certain there's anything we can do," Ren added.

"I have to agree with Ren on this. I don't know if getting involved in this will help at all. It might be best to let them hash this out themselves." Jaune told them. He looked to Ruby who continued to watch her teammates argue. He placed his hand upon her shoulder to try and attempt to assure her to some extent. He didn't know if it worked, but for her and Yang's sakes, he hoped they would cease their arguing.

* * *

They didn't stop. Not at any point on the way back to Beacon. Even as he left them to go and try out his new shield in one of the combat rooms, they still argued. He wondered if they would ever cease as it seemed they could go on forever. He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind as he cracked his knuckles and readied to fight the training bots. He drew his blade and expanded his shield as the timer ran down and the bots were deployed.

The first bot charged at him as soon as the timer hit zero, slashing at him with its training saber. Jaune quickly blocked the strike and smashed the bot in the head at the same time before delivering a kick to its midsection. It flew back as four other bots charged him at once. Jaune hit the first to reach him with the edge of his shield, breaking its head off as a result as he blocked another blow with his sword. He phased through another attack before rolling forward.

Turning while kneeling on the ground, he cut the legs out from underneath the bot that had just tried to strike him. He quickly rose and threw his shield at another of the two remaining bots, smashing one in the process before he rushed forward and sliced the last bot in half.

Sheathing his blade and summoning his shield back he turned and saw his score close to the top of the board. He smiled as he compressed his shield back into its compact form and made his way towards the door. As he went to leave, he found the door opening and Cardin walked through it. "Oh, hey Jaune." he greeted.

"Hey, Cardin." he greeted back. Cardin was true to his word and had begun to try and change his ways. He didn't bother anyone anymore and he even publically apologized to Velvet earlier in the week in the Cafeteria. While he still had a ways to go before Cardin could get past what he'd done, he had made an effort to try. And for that, Jaune had decided to try and help Cardin improve his skills. "We still up for that training session later?"

"Oh, yeah! I just came here to get warmed up for it." Cardin told him.

"Alright, just don't be late," Jaune told him before moving past him and making his way out of the training center. It did not take him long to get back to the dorms, and upon reaching the second floor, he released a heavy sigh as he could still hear Weiss and Blake arguing. He had begun to worry that the two of them would come to blows or cause a rift in their team if they didn't resolve this between them soon.

He blocked out what they were saying as he walked to his team's dorm, but as Jaune began to pass by Team RWBY's door he heard Blake yell, "Well maybe we were just tired of being pushed around!" That made him stop in his tracks. Only one thought popped into his head at hearing that.

His suspicions were right.

Blake Belladonna was a faunus.

A moment passed at the realization, and the door flew open, and Blake stepped out, bumping into him as she tried to run down the hall. She looked up at him, and he could see that her eyes conveyed fear. But fear of what? Fear for being found out? Fear of being rejected for being what she is? He could only ponder what the answer could be as she stepped back and ran the other direction, running up to the roof.

"Blake, wait!" Ruby called out in vain as she ran out into the hall.

Jaune looked to her and then into the room to see Yang and Weiss' shocked expressions. Another sigh escaped him as he looked down the hall to where Blake had sped off too. Ruby began to go after her, but Jaune blocked her path with an outstretched hand. "It might be best to leave her be, for now, Ruby. Let her come back on her time," he told her.

"But what if she never comes back?!" she worried.

"I doubt that will happen," he told her. "I may not know much about her, but I don't think she'd come this far to just run away from Beacon. Just give her a bit of time, Ruby." he began to walk towards his room and stopped at his door. "But, in case you go after her, and I know you will if you need any help you only need to ask."

Ruby looked at him with one of the saddest expressions he'd ever seen on her before she turned away from him. "Thank you, Jaune." Ruby walked back into the room and shut the door behind her, silence ringing through the hall afterward.

Jaune frowned at his friend's demeanor as he too entered into his dorm and found his team standing close to the door, each bearing a worried expression. He didn't say anything to them as he moved past them and sat on his bed. Looking out the window to the shattered moon he hoped that Blake would be well and come back soon, both for her own and her team's sake.

* * *

**AN: Well this chapter took longer then I would have liked it too. Hope you all enjoyed it though it was both fun and a pain to write at certain points, mostly everything with the shield. Just for a reference Jaunes shield is Kratos' shield from the latest God of War game, figured it's fit well in the RWBY world.**

**Anyway, I hope to get the next chapter out fast so i hope to see you all soon. Later!**


	9. Battle at the Docks

_**Chapter 9 - Battle at the Docks**_

* * *

**Beta Reader: **_**WhiteNightBlade**_

* * *

JJaune currently found himself once again flying into Vale, his team and the RWY of RWBY accompanying him. Ruby had taken him up on his offer of aid as an entire day had passed with no word from the former secret faunus. Upon learning of what had transpired, the rest of his team had agreed to help find their friend, and so their journey began. The group had let an uneasy silence take them over as they waited to arrive in Vale.

Tired of the silence Jaune spoke, "Any idea where she might go?"

"I'd say the bookstore we passed by the other day, but that seems too obvious," Yang said as she took hold of her chin and pondered.

"Does she have any family in Vale she would go to?" Pyrrha asked.

"No, she told us her parents aren't in Vale. She never specified exactly where they were from." Ruby answered.

"Being a faunus, I would guess they would be on Menagerie, but we're getting off topic. Would she go to a cafe, or somewhere similar?" Ren questioned.

"It's entirely possible," Ruby said.

"Good job, Ren! I'm so glad that my best friend is so smart!" Nora said as she smiled at him.

"Thank you, Nora," Ren responded, smiling back at her as he did so.

With that settled, Jaune began to try and remember if they had come across any cafes the other day. They had gotten lunch from a local sandwich shop, and with the commotion of seeing where the robbery took place and then the faunus guy chased by the authorities, he didn't pay attention. 'I didn't notice any cafes either.' Victor told him as he prepared to ask the spirit.

"Weiss? You ok?" Ruby asked her partner, breaking Jaune out of his train of thought. The Schnee Heiress had remained quiet throughout the entirety of the flight to this point. As to why Jaune had a suspicion, but it seemed he would soon have his answer

"Nope. My teammate was a member of the White Fang, can't say I'm overjoyed about that." Weiss answered, not meeting anyone's gaze as she looked up.

"Weiss..." Ruby muttered annoyed.

"I'm pretty sure we should get her side of the story before we jump to any conclusions." Yang offered.

"And I'm sure that when we find her, you two will realize that I was right all along," Weiss said. "Are you two really not concerned over this? What else has she chosen not to tell us?"

"Everyone has things they wish to keep hidden, Blake is no different," Jaune said.

Weiss turned to him with an annoyed expression adorning her face. "So you think it was right she chose not to tell her own team that she was a faunus? To hide it from us?"

"After the way you acted two days ago, I'd say she was perfectly justified in not telling you," Jaune told her, causing her to avert her gaze from him. He released a sigh as he leaned back against the seat. "Listen, I'm not gonna defend Blake's actions, only she can do that if she chooses to. But, I also won't vilify her. As Yang said, we don't know the full story. I say you let her explain herself before you jump to conclusions. Nothing good ever comes of that."

Weiss did not respond as she seemed to begin to ponder over Jaune's words. This time the silence that overtook them lasted only a short while as they arrived in Vale. Upon exiting the plane, they all agreed that splitting up would allow them the best chance of finding Blake quickly. Jaune decided to go and look around where they were the other day. It was a long-shot, but he had to start somewhere.

_'One question, what are you going to do when you find her?'_ Victor questioned.

'I'll ask her to return to her team.' Jaune answered.

_'Ask? Not bring her back?'_

'I'm not going to force her to do that. She has to come back on her own.' he told the spirit. 'I will let Ruby know where she is though, that way she can speak with her team.'

_'What will you do if she tries to run?'_ Victor asked.

Jaune shrugged. 'Follow her, I suppose. I doubt she'll run from me though.'

_'And what makes you say that?'_

'Ruby said she ran after revealing she had been in the Fang, she obviously wanted that kept a secret. She no doubt ran because she thought they would hate her for that, Weiss' attitude that day certainly didn't help. Hopefully, she's calmed down enough so that won't happen again.' Jaune told the spirit.

_'You've thought about this quite a bit.'_ Victor said. _'Good work, Jaune.'_

'Learned it from you, Vic.' Jaune said, a smile adorning his face as he did so.

Jaune found that the streets of Vale weren't as busy as they were two days earlier, that wasn't surprising though as it was Sunday. Most took this day to rest and spend time with their families before the work week started back up once again. Downtown Vale was no different, the only real difference was most of the restaurants were still open, but that wasn't surprising.

He made his way back to the bookshop to try and see if the owner may know anything about where Blake would be, but the shop was closed. He began to pull out his scroll and send a message to the others, to see if they had managed to find anything, but as he did, a restaurant down the street caught his eye. With a shrug, Jaune figured he'd go and look there before sending the message. As he approached, he began to see that the building was two stories with a deck where customers could sit. He entered the establishment and released a short sigh as he saw no sign of the faunus girl, not noticing one of the waitresses approached him.

"Welcome, sir! Please, follow me this way!" she told him. He began to object but a rumbling from his stomach silenced him, and he followed her to the deck on the second floor. As he sat, she handed him a menu. "Now, do you know what you want to drink or would you like to wait and decide?"

"I'll just have some tea, thank you," he told her with a smile.

The waitress nodded as she went back into the building and quickly returned with a pot of tea and a small cup. She placed the cup in front of him before pouring tea into it for him and left the pot on the table for him. "Have you decided what you would like to have today?"

"I'll just take some eggs and some toast," he told her as he handed her the menu. She walked off again and left him be on the deck. He relaxed into the chair as he pulled out his scroll and sent a message out to the others.

Anyone find her yet? - J

Not yet - RR

Nothing on my end - Y

Unfortunately, no - P

No sign of her here - W

Nothing over here! But I shall find her! Worry not, fearless leader! - N

I have yet to find her. - LR

Jaune released a deep breath as he placed his scroll back in his pocket and grabbed hold of his teacup to bring it to his lips. As he did so, Victor materialized across from him. _'So, where to next?'_ he asked as he turned and looked to his young counterpart.

"The outer city maybe?" he pondered aloud, not afraid to do so now as they were all alone.

_'Have you thought she might not be in the city? Perhaps in Forever Fall?'_ Victor offered.

"It's possible. Though I doubt she'd go there alone with all the Grimm there, especially given the panicked state she was in." Jaune told him.

_'True.'_ Victor responded._ 'I'm sure you'll find her soon enough. Hell, she may be just around the corner.'_

Upon saying that the door to the deck opened and out stepped three people. One was the waitress from before. The second was a guy with blonde hair blue eyes and a monkey tail, the faunus from the other day, and lastly was the person he had been searching for, Blake Belladonna. Her amber eyes grew wide as she met Jaune's blue and she did not take another step as the waitress began to lead her and the guy to another table.

_'Or, maybe she'll just walk through the door.'_

"Miss, are you alright?" the waitress asked as she turned back to look at her.

Blake seemed to be pulled out of her shock as she looked over to the waitress. "Oh...um..."

"They're with me," Jaune said to everyone present. "I was wondering when you'd show up, Blake." He gestured over to the seat opposite him as the faunus guy grabbed a chair and placed it to Jaunes left. Victor smirked at him as he disappeared and Blake hesitantly took the spirit's place, albeit unknowingly. They both ordered a cup of tea, and the waitress poured them both their drinks. Blakes companion ordered a waffle with bananas and Blake herself didn't want anything.

The three of them sat in an uneasy silence before Blake seemed to have had enough of it. "Jaune, why are you here?"

"Finally, she speaks! Nearly two days and she hasn't given me anything other than small talk and weird looks." she glared at him. "Yeah, like that."

"Um, to eat?" he answered with an arched brow. Blake shot another glare at him. He raised his hands defensively. "I've been looking for you, decided to get something to eat since I couldn't find you. Well, until now."

"Why?" she asked immediately.

"Ruby asked me to." he took hold of his tea-cup and took another sip from it. "She's worried about you. Your whole team is." Blake looked down to the table as Jaune looked to the third member of their little group. "What's your name man?"

"Sun, Sun Wukong," he told him. "Have we met before?"

"You ran past me two days ago when you were running away from the cops," he told him with a short chuckle.

"Oh yeah! Now I remember!" Sun said as he too laughed.

"Why did you stowaway on that ship?" Jaune asked, genuinely curious. "I'm sure there are easier ways to get to Vale."

"I wanted to get here as soon as I could for the tournament. The other members of my team weren't ready to come, so I went ahead without them." Sun told him as he gripped his teacup with his tail.

"Probably could've thought of a better way to get here," June told him as he finished his tea.

"Yeah, probably." Sun agreed.

Jaune's attention went back to Blake as she looked down into her teacup. She seemed to be pondering something. What that was he could only guess. Maybe it was about her team. Perhaps it was about how she could go back. He honestly couldn't be sure. "Jaune, Sun, are you familiar with the White Fang?" she asked them as she looked up at them.

"Yeah, of course! Don't think there's a faunus in the world who doesn't know who about them." Sun said as he set his cup down. "Stupid holier-than-thou creeps who use force to get what they want. Bunch of freaks if you ask me."

"I've never had dealings with them personally, but I know who they are," Jaune told her. "You were a member, weren't you?"

"Yes, I was," Blake told them, causing Sun to cough as he took another sip from his cup.

"Well, that explains why you got so upset over Weiss insulting the Fang the other day. Other than the fact of you being a faunus." Jaune said as he leaned back in the chair.

"Wait, hold up! You were a member of the White Fang?!" Sun asked surprised.

"Yes. I was a member for most of my life actually. You could say I was born into it. Back then, things were different. In the ashes of war, the White Fang would help bring peace between the humans and faunus. Of course, despite that, humanity still treated the faunus as lesser beings. And so the White Fang rose to be the voice of our people, and I was there, at every rally and every boycott. I actually thought we were making a difference. But I was just a youthful optimist." she told them as she looked down at her hands.

"You were a child, you can't fault yourself for that," Jaune told her.

"So, what made you leave the Fang?" Sun asked as he leaned forward.

"Five years ago, our leader stepped down, and a new one took his place. Our peaceful attempts to earn respect turned into organized attacks. We burned establishments that refused to serve us, attacked convoys for companies that used faunus labor, and stole from the kingdoms. Through it all, I was told we were doing what we had to, but I had enough of the violence. I no longer wished to fight just for us to be feared; I wanted us to be equal. So I left and decided to devote myself to protecting people in order to make up for what I helped; to become a Huntress." she finished telling them.

"Can't say I blame you for wanting to leave. I'm glad you got out of that." Sun told her with a smile.

"Thanks," she told him, returning the smile before her gaze shifted over to Jaune. He sat with his hand cupping his chin as he met her gaze, not saying a word. If she was honest, she thought he would get angry at learning she was a member of the White Fang, plenty of others would have.

"I gotta say, doing what you did was extremely brave." Jaune finally spoke.

"B-Brave?" she stuttered out, surprised.

"You left the only life you've ever known behind when the White Fang began to conflict with what you thought was right. It's a difficult thing to do, and not many others would be able to do what you did." Jaune told her honestly as he set his hand upon the table, his gaze never leaving her own.

"Thank you, Jaune," Blake told him as she smiled at him. He smiled at her too as their food had arrived and set before them. It took Jaune and Sun little time to finish their meals and the three continued to sit together as Jaune began to pull out his scroll. "What are you doing?"

"I'm calling Ruby," he told her as he began to dial up Blake's leader. The scroll was swiftly taken from him before he could press the call button and he found that Blake had been the one to take it from him. "Give me back my scroll, Blake."

"I can't let you call them, I still have something I need to do," Blake practically begged him as she tucked away his scroll into his pocket.

He could easily phase through the table and take back his scroll, but his curiosity was getting the better of him. "And what might that be?"

"I need to find out if the White Fang is behind these robberies. It doesn't make any sense why they would need so much dust." Blake told them.

"You did say they were getting more violent, so maybe they're planning some big attack with it?" Sun questioned.

"I have to make sure," Blake told them. "Though, I don't know how to go about proving their innocence."

"Unfortunately, neither do I," Jaune said.

"Well, I may have an idea," Sun said.

"Oh?" Jaune questioned as he and Blake turned to their companion.

"On the boat ride here I heard some of the crew were talking about an SDC dust shipment coming in soon," Sun told them.

"How big?" Blake asked, intrigued by the news.

Sun shrugged as he answered, "It was supposed to arrive at the docks sometime this weekend."

"You're sure?" Blake asked and received an immediate nod from Sun. "Then we need to get there fast."

"Wait," Jaune interjected as he began to rise out of his chair. "Are you sure about this? About going up against the Fang?"

"We don't know that its the Fang behind all this," Blake argued.

"True, but let say that it is the Fang. Are you prepared to fight them?" he asked as he stepped towards her.

"If I have to," Blake answered after a few seconds.

"Are you truly ready to fight against people you use to fight alongside?" he asked as he took another step.

"... Yes," she took longer to answer.

"One last thing, are you scared to fight them?" Jaune said as he now stood in front of her.

"No." she answered immediately, looking away from him as she did so.

"Liar. I'll ask again. Are. You. Afraid?" he looked down at her as she turned back to look into his eyes.

"Yes," she answered.

"Good."

"Good?" Sun questioned.

"It means she's not stupid," he explained as he phased his hand into her pocket and retrieved his scroll. She grabbed his forearm and looked at him pleadingly, a look which he challenged with intense refusal to back down. "I won't call them yet. But before this day is over, you. Will. Talk. To. Your. Team. Now, let's go." Jaune placed some lien on the table for the waitress, and the three of them began to make their way towards the docks.

* * *

"You know, this wasn't how I imagined my day going when Ruby asked me to help find you," Jaune told the former White Fang member as he stared up at the sky, laying down on a shipping container as he did so. He had been here with Blake and Sun for nearly the entire day, waiting for the dust shipment to arrive. Up to now, it had yet to do so. Blake was laying on her stomach beside him, watching the shipping container like a hawk. Sun had gone to get himself something to eat around ten minutes ago, leaving him and Blake by themselves.

"I didn't either, but we have to be here," Blake told him.

He looked over at her, his eyes looking over her entirety before his gaze rested on the back of her head. "Pretty sure you're the only one to think that." she looked back at him, glaring as she did so for the second time today. "But, hey, I agreed to help so can't say it's your fault I'm here." She looked back to the container after a roll of her eyes. He leaned up and placed his right arm over his raised knee as he too began to watch the shipping area. "Quick question, say it is the Fang who come to get this shipment, what exactly are you going to do?"

"Stop them," Blake told him.

"I figured that, but how do you intend to go about doing that? Chances are we'll be outgunned down there when and if they show up, so going in guns blazing doesn't sound like the best option to me," he said.

"Neither does it to me," she responded. "I'll try to reason with them; try to find out why they are doing this."

"You sure they'll listen to you? You said they were getting more violent, so chances are they may try to attack us on sight." Jaune told her as he looked over at her prone form.

"I have to try, Jaune. I just...I have to try." Blake told him as she looked down at the top of the container they were on.

Jaune released a heavy sigh as he continued to look over at her. He could understand her wanting to try and change the members of the Fang's minds, as they were once her family after all. He knew that if Vince or either of his other brothers had gone down a similar path, he would do all he could to turn them back to the light. "Then I hope you can help them see the light, Blake. I truly do," he told her as he looked away from her and watched the container. He could feel her look over at him for a moment, but no more words passed between them for a time.

The silence was broken when Sun laned beside him. "I'm back!" he announced before kneeling beside Jaune.

"Shh! Do you want them to know we're here?!" Blake chastised.

"Sorry!" he told her before he pulled out two apples from his shirts pockets. "So what did I miss?"

"Not a damn thing," Jaune answered.

"They unloaded the last of the crates from the boat, and now they're just sitting there," Blake told him.

"Cool. So, I stole you guys some food. You want it?" he told them as he offered them both an apple.

Jaune took the fruit gladly as he had not eaten since leaving the diner and was famished. "Do you always break the law without a second thought?" Blake asked as she looked at the offered fruit.

"Hey, weren't you in a cult or something?" he asked back, causing Jaune to cough as he couldn't help but laugh at that. Blake glared at them both. "Okay, too soon."

The wind suddenly kicked up as several ships flew into the shipyard and began to hover around it. Jaune covered his face as the dirt was flown up at them and he watched the vessels start to descend. Several men in black vests and masks exited the Bullheads upon their landing and began to secure the area. Jaune saw on the back of each of their garments was a silver emblem of a head with devil horns and red eyes. "Is...is that them?" Sun asked as he tried to get a better look at them.

Blake breathed a sigh of relief and answered, "No, that's not them. That's the Silver Devils."

"Silver Devils..." Jaune spoke as he watched the group spread out around the shipyard. There were just over twenty of them in total that had just arrived, and it seemed they were waiting for something. As he began to ponder what that could be several other Bullheads came. In one a tall man, around six foot five, with snow-white hair, pale skin, and violet eyes exited the ship that landed near the center of the shipyard. He wore a white cloak, with the same silver devil symbol on the back of his coat, over a black shirt with a matching pair of pants and a grey pair of boots. Jaune had to assume this guy was the leader of the gang just from his appearance alone.

"Get this stuff hooked up, we need to get out of here ASAP." the man in silver commanded his underlings. As it seemed time for them to move and stop them, another ship flew in, and several people descended from cables into the yard. They all wore black hoodies with white vests that had a red animal head insignia with claw marks running along it. Jaune heard a gasp and looked over to see Blake with a disheartened expression on her face.

"Is that them?" he asked her, already knowing the answer.

"...Yes," she admitted, her head resting against the metal of the top of the containers as she did so.

"Hey, what's the hold-up?!" another voice called out, catching everyone's attention. The man that was speaking now was one that Jaune recognized near instantly. The man that was all over the news, as well as the one who had gotten into a fight with Ruby before the school year had begun; Roman Torchwhick. "Can't you animals work any faster?! We need to get out of here fast before we're spotted!"

Blake rose to her feet, anger evident on her face as she watched the bowler hat wearing criminal order around her people. Before Jaune or Sun could try and stop her, she drew her blade and made her way over to the man. Jaune cursed under his breath as he followed after her with Sun following after him. Blake got behind Roman and put her blade to his throat, surprising him and the members of the Fang and the Devils as she did so. They all aimed their weapons at her as she untied her bow and allowed it to fly away.

"Brothers of the White Fang, why are you aiding this scum?!" she demanded to know.

Roman began to chuckle in response as the man in silver simply smirked at her, seeming to be intrigued by this. "Oh kid, didn't you get the memo?" he asked her with a short chuckle.

"What are you talking about?" she demanded again, her blade pressed against his throat now.

"The White Fang, myself, and these fine gentlemen here are going in on a joint business venture together," he told her, smirking as he did so.

"Tell me what it is, or I'll put an end to your little operation," she told him as she began to move her blade along his neck.

The wind picked up again, and two of the Bullheads now floated in front of both of them, their weapons ready to fire. "I wouldn't call it a little operation," Torchwick told her as he placed his finger on his canes trigger and pulled it. The resulting explosion forced Blake back, and as Roman fired off another round, Jaune jumped in front of her and deflected the shot with his shield.

"What happened to not rushing in?!" he chastised as he looked back at her, somewhat tempted to slap the back of her head. The snap of someone's fingers brought his attention back to his front as four of the Devils rushed him. He jumped to avoid their combined attack, and as he came back to the ground, he kicked one of them in the face. He bashed the second in the face with his shield as Sun came and drop-kicked the other two gang members. The two of them nodded to one another as they looked to who would attack them next.

Roman began walking towards them, twirling his cane on his finger as he did so. "Isn't it past your kids' bedtime? Jeez, what are they teaching you at those academies!"

"He's mine!" Blake yelled as she rushed past the two of them and lunged at him.

Jaune grit his teeth as he began to move to help her, but he was forced to hold up his shield as the man in silver delivered three spinning kicks to his side. Jaune moved to retaliate, but another punch forced him to keep his shield up. "Didn't your parents ever teach you it's rude to interrupt? Guess I gotta teach you some manners, kid!" the man said as Jaune forced him back, sending him crashing into a container. He turned to Sun and motioned for him to help Blake as before he drew his sword. Sun did so as the man pulled himself out of the crate. "That was pretty dumb there, kid."

Jaune arched his brow at the statement.

"You just lost your advantage," he told him as he reached into his coat and pulled out a metal disk.

He pressed a button on the disks handle and several blades extended along the disk's edge before they started to spin. The man smirked before throwing his weapon at Jaune. It whipped past him and cut through the side of the crate behind him as though it were a hot knife going through butter. Jaune in response threw his shield at the man, and he was stunned when he caught it in his left hand. The man smirked as he raised and opened his right hand, a metal cuff glowing as he did so.

Jaune realized what he was doing and jumped up as the disk flew back towards him. Pain surged in his back as his shield slammed into his back mid-air after it had been thrown back at him. A groan escaped him as he brought the shield back to his gauntlet and landed atop a container. A pained groan escaped him just before the man in silver jumped up at him and punched at him with the disk in his hand. Jaune blocked the attack again and kicked the man in the left knee before pushing him back. He sliced at the man's chest with his blade but was unable to hit him as he moved away from Jaune. Undeterred, Jaune pressed on as he spun on his heel and brought his shield up again, slamming it into the man's face and sending him off of the container to the ground.

With that taken care of, Jaune turned back to see Blake and Sun working together to fight Roman, and he began to run to join and aid them. _'Jaune, behind you!'_ Victor yelled, making Jaune look back. The spirit's warning came too late as Jaune was kicked in the side of his abdomen, sending him crashing into a far off container.

He heard his name called out as his head reeled from the impact. He pulled himself out of the container and collapsed as a constant ringing sounded off in his head. His right eye was forced closed as blood began to flow down his face, dripping off his chin and turning part of his hair red.

The man in silver walked up once Jaune had gotten back to his feet and wiped the blood from his eye. The cut healed quickly as the two men stared one another down. Jaune's adversary held his disk out in front of him as the blades ceased in spinning. Two of the blades then extended out, giving the man's weapon two long one-sided blades. The disk then split in half, now forming two cutlass-like-swords that he wielded in both hands.

He lunged again, stabbing at Jaune's head but only hitting air as Jaune dodged to his right. The edge of Jaune's shield slammed into the man's gut before Jaune whirled around him. Jaune swung at the man's head but was stopped as both of the man's blades caught his own. The silver gangster then stepped up against a container and flipped so that he was now behind Jaune. He cut horizontally at Jaunes back, ripping his coat but not cutting Jaune himself as his back had increased in density. A sudden kick to the devil's gut sent him back once more into a container wall, but this time, before he could recover, Jaune charged him with his shield in front of him and drove him all the way through it, as well as the container that sat on the other side of it.

Jaune leaped to the other side of the containers and found his foe had vanished. He quickly found him as one of his swords cut Jaune's right cheek. Before he could activate his aura to heal the wound, Jaune spun, but his attempted attack was stopped as both of the man's swords blocked his own. Seeing an opportunity, Jaune activated the dust in his blade, coating it with lightning as he pushed the man back, sending a jolt through his body as he stumbled for a moment. Jaune then smirked as he changed the dust on his blade to fire and slashed at him, sending an arc of fire at him.

The man in silver cut through the blade with his own and chuckled at the attempt. He then noticed Jaunes smirk and looked down to his feet and saw the dust that was now ignited. "Shit," he uttered before the dust exploded. Jaune brought his shield up and tucked his body behind his shield.

Jaune crashed into yet another container as his aura flickered around him. He looked over to where he previously stood and saw his foe laying face down on the ground, smoke rising from the area around him. "And stay down," he said aloud as he got back up to his feet. He looked over to find that Ruby had just arrived and was now helping Blake and Sun fight Roman. Jaune began to make his way over to them to assist as he collapsed his shield, but he quickly regretted that action as he was kicked to the ground.

The man in silver had gotten back to his feet and had dropkicked Jaune as his back was turned. He had left his coat behind, and his body was now covered in soot as he stared down at Jaune. "Gotta admit, that was pretty smart there, kid," he told him as he raised his blades and stomped down on Jaune's back, making him groan in pain. "Too bad you didn't finish the job." His blades then descended, but he was forced to jump back as several rounds fired at him.

"Get away from him!" Ruby yelled as she fired several more rounds at the man.

The man in silver jumped back away from Jaune to avoid her attack. Ruby rushed over to her fellow leader and helped him back to his feet as their enemy looked down at them with a smirk. "Aww, isn't that cute! Your little girlfriend came to rescue you!" he taunted Jaune. Jaune growled in response as he glared up at the man. "Though it won't do you much good, your journies to be hunters is about to come to a sudden and tragic halt. That's the price of meddling in the Demon's affairs."

Jaune growled in response as his eyes shifted to their golden hue. He looked over to Ruby, who was surprised to see the color of his eyes, but regained her composure and nodded her head. She shifted her gaze to the man in, or more precisely formerly in, silver and sped up to him. Swinging Crescent Rose down at him, her beloved weapon was stopped as the man held both of his blades up to block the attack. Then she pulled on her scythes trigger, and he was sent back. He chuckled as the young huntress spun and pulled on the trigger again, slamming the back of her scythe into his chest.

As he was once again sent backward, Jaune appeared next to him and slammed his shield into the man's gut before kneeing him in the head as he continued to fall. He recovered before hitting the ground and blocked Jaune following up with a sword strike of his own. Ruby sped behind and tried to slash him, but he blocked that attack as well with his other blade. Her finger went to pull on her trigger again, but something slammed into her chest with enough power to send her flying before she could. She crashed into a far off container, shattering her aura from the force of the impact.

"RUBY!" Jaune yelled before he realized what had sent her back. A scorpion's tail had sprouted out of the man's lower back and was now poised to attack him. Before he could move to avoid any such attack, he was kneed in the gut and then felt two sharp pains surge from the sides of his abdomen. Looking down he found that both of the man's blades penetrated through his aura.

The man smirked as he began to drive the blades slowly and agonizingly through Jaune's body, causing him to let out sharp screams of pain as they did so. "Gotta admit, I thought you had me a couple times back there. Consider me impressed," he told Jaune. "But like I said, your journey to becoming a hunter ends here." His scorpion tail began wrapping around Jaune's neck as the blades continued to stab into him. With as much strength as he could muster, Jaune rushed his sword arm up and cut at the tail, severing before it could become any tighter.

The man yelled in pain and moved backward, taking his swords out of Jaune's gut. He whirled around to deliver the killing blow, but Jaune sped forward with his decreased density and stabbed the man in his abdomen in return. "Well...played," he told Jaune before he coughed up blood and moved back, removing the sword from himself. He knelt in front of Jaune as he clutched his gut. "Gotta say, you're more formidable than I originally thought. I underestimated you, and I admit that" he said with a chuckle before looking over to Ruby who was rushing over to them now. He then spied Roman and his men leaving the ship-yard. "But it seems our time has come to an end." He stood up in front of Jaune and removed his hand from his gut, showing his wound was now fully healed. Large black wings sprouted from his back suddenly as he spoke his farewell, "Til next time, kid. Try to stay alive. At least, until we next meet, you're too much fun." He then flapped his wings and flew off, following the Bullheads as they retreated from the ship-yard.

Jaune collapsed as Ruby finally got to him, placing her hands on his shoulders as he remained in his hunched-over state. "Jaune! Oh gods, hold on!" she told him as she saw the small pool of blood forming under him. "Guys, please, come help!" she yelled as she tried to think of some way to help him. Blake, Sun, and Penny made their way over to them, and Blake began to help apply pressure to his wounds as Ruby ran to get some medical help. Jaune would not see when they came, as he started to feel his consciousness beginning to fade away from him as he continued to lose blood, despite Blake's attempt to stop that.

The last thing he heard was Ruby and Blake trying to talk to him before his body fell limp and all light faded from the world.

* * *

**AN: And with this Volume 1 is pretty much covered, damn this was a lot of fun to write! Hope you all enjoyed the fight, haven't written one like that in a long time.**

**Also, sorry for the long wait for this chapter. I got distracted by Game of Thrones season 8 and decided to take some time from writing so as to not burn myself out as I did before. Well, season 8 really didn't help with that but there's no use in going into that subject. I didn't like how it went, and I'll leave it at that.**

**Just for reference the man who fought Jaune, his weapon is a combination of the smart disk from the Predator movies and the high Inquisitors lightsaber in terms of him of looks. Figured I'd clarify that for you all in case any of you were curious. And now we go on to the next chapter, hope to see you all then!**

**Later!**


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